The Archmage’s Restaurant

# 153

Chapter.36 Hibiren Flowers and Concert

***

The Gray boy arrived in the capital with Verna. Although the Gray family is small in size, they are still a count in name and reality.

A nobleman with a fiefdom for which the great nobles have the right to rule, ownership, and hereditary rights is a nobleman among nobles.

The king of the nobles is a great nobleman called a duke.

The empire has three such dukes. Usually, the number of nobles that a duke has under him exceeds 100.

Here, the nobles he controls refer to counts, barons, viscounts, etc.

The empire is divided into east, west, south, and north according to the feudal lords, and the lands in the east, west, south, and north are further divided into numerous fiefdoms.

So, in fact, there are quite a few nobles among nobles. Of course, compared to the total population, it is a small number, less than 0.0001%.

In any case, among the nobles, the ranks are divided in various ways.

The hierarchy is very strict.

Therefore, following the Chamberlain’s advice that he should not be looked down on by noble society as long as he participated in the concert, the Gray boy acquired a mansion belonging to a fallen noble family and stayed there.

Of course, the top priority was to have Legana installed in the mansion to practice on, but it was not a problem because it was more difficult to find a mansion without Legana than a noble mansion in the capital.

But the more it happened, the more the Gray boy began to worry.

Following his persuasion, Verna decided to participate in the concert.

This trauma will ultimately have no choice but to be resolved at the source that gave it its cause.

Verna, who had made up her mind, was concentrating on practicing while sleeping less at night. Every time the boy saw that, he became afraid of what would happen if Verna did not get the results he wanted.

That’s how I like playing.

I wonder if this incident will cause them to completely let go of it.

That kind of worry came to mind.

Could it be that he was instigated for no reason?

I kept thinking about this.

But at the same time, I was confident that that would never happen.

Verna’s playing is so beautiful.

It’s not a preconceived notion that I’m familiar with because I’ve heard it since I was young. This is a conclusion I came to after listening to a lot of other musicians.

I remember my childhood.

I remember my father, Count Gray, patting my shoulder with joy whenever my mother played.

When I recall that happy memory, I am filled with the wish that Verna could at least resume playing next to her father and that I could watch the scene from his side.

That wind probably wasn’t a useless encouragement.

Expectations and worries mix in your mind, making you increasingly timid, then bold, and then you move in a complicated way.

‘no. I’m not worried about my mother’s skills. The concerts I participated in when I was young must have been due to mistakes or nervousness.’

The boy was so sure that he started pounding his cheeks to shake off his timid worries.

“Master has arrived.”

“okay?”

At that time, the chief chamberlain of the Gray family opened the carriage door and spoke to the Gray boy.

Little master. Alternatively, the Gray boy who was a master had already become a proud master to the subordinates of the territory.

The place the Gray boy visited was the mansion of Duke Delian, one of the three dukes of Melik Delian Empire.

A mansion as large as its grandeur.

The entrance was a huge gate, and the garden was so huge that you had to take a carriage to get to the main building of the mansion.

On the way, the boy’s eyes passed by the servant’s mansion and stables, and only after passing the central fountain did the mansion appear.

In fact, the Gray boy had been planning to help the crown prince and learn about central politics since the dinner party where he dealt with the Duke of Taimuran.

But soon that thought changed. This was because he decided that learning from El was much better than going into central politics.

There is only one reason to visit this place.

This is because the Duke of Delian personally invited it.

I didn’t meet the great nobleman who could even drop birds just because a nobleman from a country estate like Gray Boy wanted to meet him.

“Welcome. “I am Count Michel.”

“I am Count Gray. “I’m honored to have you invite me.”

Count Michel, the duke’s servant, was there to meet them in front of the mansion, so the two immediately headed towards their destination.

The mansion, with numerous maids and servants moving in perfect order, was as grand as the imperial palace.

Whenever Count Michel and the Gray Boy passed by, they stopped what they were doing, bowed, and did not move. Only after the two people have completely passed by, do you straighten up again and resume work.

After passing the scene, I stopped in front of a room with a majestic huge door. Beyond that door was Duke Delian’s study.

***

On the way back to the temporary residence in the capital. Inside the carriage, the Gray boy sighed deeply.

‘If I had known it would be like this, I would have asked my teacher for advice.’

I felt embarrassed for not knowing that a concert was such a complicated thing.

And I felt like hitting myself for cheating on Verna without knowing about the complex involvement of interests in the concert.

But the water has already been spilled. Now, my mother also realized that this concert was not going to work, or that the concert was actually a political fight, and that the participation in the last concert was not due to your skills, but a big conspiracy led by Count Dedran, in which even your father, Count Gray, was used. I didn’t have the confidence to tell the truth.

She already tried to throw away her life, saying she couldn’t forgive herself for making her father like that.

If Verna found out that her father was used by Count Dedran again, her mind and body would become extremely unstable.

Since I had barely forgotten what happened and started living a new life, I couldn’t bring up the past again.

The reason I came here is to move forward.

In the end, it was a dilemma.

‘Then what should I do… .’

The Duke of Delian was not the only one who found the boy. Other dukes also found the Gray Boy and said similar things.

The unanimous conclusion was that they should come under their wing. The intention is very obvious.

Huge tax revenue.

This is something that occurs within the limits of imperial law, where Gray City cannot become a territory under the direct control of the emperor.

Therefore, I felt keenly that I should not make this decision rashly, and L also warned me about it.

In addition, El negotiated with His Majesty the Emperor regarding the watch industry and deferred that choice.

At this point, you realize how great of a person the teacher you happened to serve was before he retired, but that is not the problem now.

There is no teacher here to whine and give advice.

The concert ends when you return to Great City.

So, I had no choice but to make this choice.

I brought him here for Verna, but in the end, all I can do is disappoint Verna again.

However, this important issue could not be chosen randomly.

If you choose the wrong faction, your family may fall.

Hereditary rights and ownership of fiefdoms are recognized.

But there are only two exceptions.

The empire is invaded by another country.

Either the great nobles who pay taxes will fall.

It is an unreasonable structure in which when a high-ranking noble falls, all the nobles that the great noble commands also fall.

Of course, just as it is said that it takes three years for a rich person to fail, it is not easy for a great noble to fall.

It happens under the guise of a massive national overthrow, similar to a rebellion.

However, the problem is that those in power, such as dukes, are unable to settle for reality and often seek to overthrow the country.

Other downfalls.

If the heir falls due to a mistake, like the previous marquis, he will be reorganized again, so he will not lose his status as a lord.

So ultimately, rebellion is the problem.

To find a duke or marquis free from it.

Reading people’s minds wasn’t that easy.

And that’s not the only problem.

There are some dukes, like the Duke of Taemuran who visited before, who look down on themselves and try to completely destroy the count family and turn it into a scarecrow’s territory.

And if you make a mistake, even the interests of the watch industry could become a problem.

Therefore, it was risky in many ways to escape from the emperor’s direct control before he could further increase his power.

At least, if you don’t have the brains to come up with the connections and resources to solve the problem with at least a little resourcefulness like your teacher, if not to that extent.

In this wolf-like political world, you will lose everything you have and become a beggar.

If you have served a great noble for generations, you will naturally be protected by that great noble, but that is not the case.

So it is right to give up the concert.

The right thing to do is to build up your strength again and hold off as much as possible to choose Gray City’s fate.

However, since he was the one who encouraged Verna, it would be impossible for him to tell Verna the cruel reality and return to the estate after trying to overcome the trauma.

He thought it would be like killing his mother twice.

‘ha.’

The Gray boy began to feel dizzy.

***

“Why are you still serving Deadran’s daughter as your mother? Isn’t the daughter of the person who defeated your father an enemy, so to speak? “It’s really fast.”

“It’s not like that.”

“That’s not true?”

At Duke Delian’s words, the Gray boy immediately stood up.

“Your Highness Great Verna is my mother, no matter what anyone says. “She is a warm person who loves my mother and father more than anyone else.”

Duke Delian frowned at those intense eyes.

How can you be so proud while serving something dirty as your mother? I thought to myself that he was truly a worthless guy.

I heard that there was an engineer who insisted on making a clock within the estate.

I didn’t do anything myself. He is just a lord who was very fortunate to receive a large amount of tax revenue.

On such a silly topic.

Duke Delian could barely refrain from frowning further.

Thinking about that huge tax.

“I understand very well your filial piety toward your stepmother. So that’s it. But wasn’t coming to the capital to participate in the concert itself a way to return Grace City to its original position? Given his status as a count, it was natural for him to fall under the command of a great nobleman. And the string must be chosen in a strong place. There is no place that can protect you as much as the Duke of Delian. A wrong choice will only lead to downfall.”

Duke Delian looked at the Gray boy as he said that.

“I don’t know why participating in a concert is a choice. Isn’t a concert just a place to compete? Your Majesty, I am well… .”

“Your father collapsed early, so you’re a kid who doesn’t even know the basics.”

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