CHAPTER 16: FLUVIA AND THE STEWARD APPRENTICE

In the face of genius, status means nothing.

There was once a time when I had believed that.

In retrospect, one might say that this was all my just desserts for my arrogance.

I, Edgar Henry, come from a long line of civil servants, but our status isn’t very good, if you were to look at the grand scheme of things.

But, I’ve always been proud of my family’s efficiency and cleverness to manage the affairs of knights and governors.

I was considered the greatest prodigy of my generation, entering the Academy of Stewards and flying through its qualifying tests with ease at a very young age.

However, I’m not a fool.

Due to my young age, there’s no way I would even be permitted to become a Steward Apprentice even with my qualifications.

It was already a miracle that I was allowed to attend the Academy before I had come of age.

I had already made plans to stay on as an aide to the Academy until I had reached the age of 20.

To my surprise, I was instead suggested as an Apprentice Candidate for the House of Dellarose.

Although there were certainly rumors of decline, the House of Dellarose is still the House of an Earl, after all.

If I could revive the decline of that House, then wouldn’t I be in the best position?

Even that overbearing prefect, Sir Norman Fielcham will be unable to stop me from rising as high as I could go!

Indeed, arrogance overclouds one’s judgment.

After I happily accepted the position, it didn’t take long before I found out I had been sucked into a bottomless mire.

I should have questioned it more.

Why would I, young and inexperienced as I am, as well as lacking any sort of status at all, be asked into the House of an Earl?

In the end, I was made to realize it.

I was just playing in the palms of those with status and money.

Norman Fielcham, the third son of the Baron Fielcham, never could forgive me for in-delicately correcting his mistakes.

I’d imagine there were others who found me an eyesore within the Academy as well.

Although he was supposed to be competent, Steward Bolther seems to have joined hands with such unscrupulous people against the Dellarose Estate, and one of their schemes is to bring about my ruin at the same time.

But how can I make the Lord Earl realize it?

Even if he’s no longer the same, loyal Steward from before, Sir Bolther served Earl Dellarose and his House for over 30 years.

I, on the other hand, am young, new to the Household, and have heaps of insults and incompetencies being pinned to me before I could even realize it.

I’m even being watched at every moment to restrain my movements, so I can’t hope to find any proof of Sir Bolther’s disloyalty.

I had always thought that I was a person who thrived under pressure.

I had even once enjoyed it when things were made a little more difficult for me.

Never would I have imagined that I could be put under so much pressure that it would suffocate me.

This isn’t a simple situation with a higher degree of difficulty.

Every chance I see is slammed shut. Every path for escape is blocked off.

Only a fool – no, only a person who is not well-versed in this world of high society wouldn’t be able to hear the death knell echoing in the distance.

Even if the malicious intents towards me have only just begun to move in the shadows, the death of my future is clear, looming up before me like a haze of dark clouds.

These past few days as well – just when I thought I might get a chance to do something, anything, while Lord Earl and Sir Bolther made a trip to the Capital, Sir Bolther once again dragged me along with them.

He’s really not letting a single hand or foot of mine out of his sight.

Will I never have any opportunities to turn my chances around at all?!

It turns out Lord Earl only brought Sir Bolther along to tend to some business of the Young Lady Dellarose.

While I was still startled that the Young Lady – she’s supposed to be 5, isn’t she? – had some business that could possibly warrant the attentions of a Steward, Sir Bolther, in a shocking display of impropriety, refused to tend to the Young Lady’s business.

Does he intend to push this off on me, too?

It’s obvious.

When Lord Earl begins to inquire into the state of the Young Lady’s affairs, Sir Bolther merely stares at me.

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He intends to make me say it after all.

To blatantly go out of my bounds and defy the Lord Earl’s wishes – I will really be seen as a man who can’t tell his right from his left.

If the Young Lady refuses my assistance, it would be near suicidal to continue to insist, but I can’t believe that Sir Bolther would let me out of doing so.

That being said, if I can curry favor with the Young Lady… …

No, but even if taking over the Young Lady’s affairs goes smoothly, to get anything done I would have to fight an uphill battle against whatever Bolther throws my way.

There’s no way I’ll just be handed a chance for success.

However, with the Young Lady’s authority, perhaps I could act a little more boldly – but should I take this gamble?

Right when I was feeling the painful pricks of agony from being forced into a seemingly hope-filled, but quite possibly hopeless, situation, it was Young Lady Fluvia who spoke up.

“Ne, Father, this man is going to be our Steward in the future, correct?”

After these past 5 months at the Dellarose House, I can’t help but tremble at her words.

Could it be that she will despise me and refuse me as well?

Just from observing this one instance, I’m already quite clear how much the Young Lady can influence the Lord Earl’s thoughts.

If even she says I’m not suited to be the Dellarose Steward, what hope will I have left?

“Then why don’t we have him do it instead?”

…Eh?

For the first time in my life, I experienced the situation of being so shocked that all thoughts flew out of my head.

Further more, Young Lady Fluvia shocked both me and Sir Bolther with the revelation that Her Majesty, the Queen Henrietta of whom has just recovered, has a hand in the Young Lady’s business.

The Queen. Who has recently just recovered from the brink of death. At this precise House of Healing.

This… this can’t be a coincidence.

But what shocks me even further is … from the way she seems to be speaking, although Sir Bolther, who seems to have become quite senile, might not have noticed it – and the Lord Earl definitely hasn’t noticed it – Young Lady Fluvia seems to distrust Sir Bolther to a high degree.

It’s not on the level of childish dislike.

There’s true disdain and the unwillingness to entrust anything to him within her looks and words.

Her sharpness made a shiver run down my back.

On one hand, it’s a little terrifying that a 5-year-old child had such a keen wit.

On the other, I finally found a light of hope in my dismal situation.

When the Lord Earl finally, although reluctantly, left me to be in charge of the Young Lady’s affairs, when everyone had left but myself, the Young Lady, and her attendant at the House of Healing, I couldn’t help but blurt out the burning question I had.

“Why did you speak up for me?”

Being able to see through Sir Bolther, there’s no doubt she could see where I stood within the Dellarose Household.

The Young Lady snorted and said, without even trying to hide the disdain in her voice,

“A man who can’t see the possibilities and doesn’t act when the opportunities are there… it would be better to have expectations for someone I don’t know much about rather than pin my hopes on a person like that, isn’t it?”

Young Lady Fluvia tilted her head with a very un-childlike smile.

It… it certainly made a lot of sense, what she said.

Young Lady Fluvia tossed her head, looking at the attendant who was now straightening the room.

“Besides, even if Mary isn’t one of OUR maids, she’s MY attendant. How can I let a person who bullies my people be in charge of my affairs? I doubt Bolther would put even a bit of care into my business.”

Young Lady Fluvia’s attendant suddenly burst into a huge smile, although she tried to hide it.

The Young Lady didn’t even attach the obligatory “Sir” to Sir Bolther.

I suddenly realize exactly how deep her disdain for the man is.

Young Lady Fluvia suddenly stared at me with a penetrating gaze.

“Tell me honestly. What do you hope to be able to accomplish as the Steward of the Dellarose Household?”

I’m a little unprepared for the question.

“That is… I hope to be able to raise up a Household that could support our country to its best abilities.”

-! What did I just say?

To “raise up” a Household?

Can’t that imply that the current Dellarose Earldom isn’t already doing its best to support Valed?!

Even though she is only 5-years-old, I have an increasing feeling that I can’t hope for her to overlook things just because of her age.

“Th-that is, that’s the goal of all Stewards. Whether I had been relegated to a Barondom or a Duchy, I would have the same hopes-.”

I speak frantically in order to cover my mistake.

Young Lady Fluvia sighed.

“Well, I’d imagine that you’ve already seen what kind of man Father is, then.”

… So she’s also aware of it.

Young Lady, no, Lady Fluvia continued.

“To turn a Household into one that serves the country best, is it? If that’s the goal of all Stewards, to be honest, I can only think Bolther as a fool, to be so excited to leave our family.”

Certainly, an Earldom is in a good position to influence the country, after all. Even with his old age, to be able to say he had served as a Steward to an Earl is high prestige.

I also can’t fathom the reasons for his eagerness to betray the Dellarose House.

But Lady Fluvia didn’t mention such things. What Lady Fluvia said instead caught me off guard.

“After all, although Father is like that, he possesses a great amount of something that most nobles tend to have little of.”

It goes without saying that she has caught my attention.

I can’t help but ask,

“And just what is that?”

She smiles, as if satisfied that she got me to ask, then says,

“A willingness to listen to and act on advice.”

I was stunned.

That… that was certainly true.

In fact, rather than being willing, Lord Earl Dellarose actively comes to seek advice.

Just these past few weeks, I’ve seen him approach Sir Bolther for a large variety of things.

Sir Bolther seemed to find it a bother, but if one was to willingly undertake the task of explaining things to the Earl and help him make plans, certainly, your influence would not be small.

Indeed, the possibilities at the Earl’s side would be much greater than the up-and-coming Viscount Piermont’s.

“Although I say that, it’s not like Father is willing to follow blindly, but… as a Steward and an advisor, I feel like Father’s side is an acceptable place to be.”

“Rather, I believe it’s more rewarding if the master you serve has thoughts of his own.”

I smile at Lady Fluvia’s light warning and respond accordingly.

In all honesty, the Lord Earl’s over-reliance on Sir Bolther, or should I say Sir Bolther’s inability to make something of such a reliance, also contributed to Sir Bolther’s lack of loyalty.

The House is in decline and the Earl is a pushover… what man who bothered to go through the certification to become a Kingdom Appointed Steward would be proud of such a state?

But here, the Young Lady, only 1/10th Sir Bolther’s age, saw through the truth of it.

He might be a little foolish, but Lord Earl Dellarose isn’t a pushover, he’s just eager to hear your thoughts. If you properly present ideas and facts to him, he will definitely acknowledge your efforts. Isn’t that more than can be said about other Noble Houses?

That is what his daughter is telling me.

I’m beginning to feel excited at the opportunities that will lie before me in the future.

That’s right. How had I forgotten?

Before I got into this mess, my aspirations were to be a Steward, an advisor that others would envy my master of having.

Unfortunately, it was at this time, when I was just beginning to feel hope and excitement welling up from within my depths, that the Lady’s attendant spoke up to tell inform us that Lady Fluvia’s visiting times were over for today.

The details of Lady Fluvia’s business will have to wait until tomorrow.

As I left the House of Healing, I couldn’t help but turn and look back in the direction of Lady Fluvia’s window, laughing.

Sir Norman thought to run me out to obsolescence?

I thank him for it!

A bright future under a clever young mistress has unfurled before me today.