Chatper 22: Background check
Until the feast celebrating the coming spring when the new retainers were supposed to be announced, I was technically unemployed with a lot of free time. Although, I quickly filled the upcoming days with so many meetings that it felt like I was at work again.
Elvira wanted to meet before Estelle’s arrival. Most likely, to gain my perspective before she would invite Estelle for their own talk. I wanted to visit my workshop in the docks to get up to speed and discuss our options for further expansion. There was also the question of the entwickeln. I wanted to gain input from the people of the lower city.
Of course, there was that invitation from Rozemyne, which was most likely tied to the fourth step of her compression. I had heard she had been scheduled to teach a new group once all the students would return from the Academy.
And so many more.
Despite all those arrangements, I still retained enough time to read through a portion of the books and transcripts from Ferdinand’s lending, which had ended up in our possession a season ago. They had been rewritten in proper form over the winter. I wanted to finish every book that I had borrowed back then. As Rozemyne’s friend, I had to be up to scratch.
As such, any sessions tinkering with magic tools and circles in my hidden room were few and far between, though Caroline had claimed otherwise.
I thought I would start with the commoner meetings. I scratched my head as I went over their responses.
The meetings with commoners took the least amount of hassle to set up, though, on second thought, the merchants and craftsmen alike had their own busy schedules. It wasn’t an issue; I just had to postpone those.
I was actually pleasantly surprised that they felt secure enough to tell me, a noble, to wait. Maybe, finally, “whenever you have time” meant exactly that, instead of “as soon as possible.”
As such, my very first meeting would actually be with Elvira.
Caroline escorted me to one of the castle’s meeting rooms, which was already filled with the aroma of cookies. I liked the addition of sweets to the tea. It felt so welcoming, if only one didn’t have to think about the upcoming topic.
Elvira sported a refined smile while I moved through my greeting. After we sat down and sipped from our cups, I expected a discussion full of vague euphemisms and double-meaning phrases to touch upon Estelle’s situation, but Elvira offered me a sound-blocker right off the bat.
I guess she wants to be more direct.
“It has been some time since our last private conversation,” Elvira remarked, her smile relaxing.
“I am still ever so grateful for the support you and your brother provided to my household,” I replied politely.
“I am glad we were able to aid you.” Elvira nodded. Her expression seemed almost nostalgic. “Although, to be honest with you, when I first learned about your existence, I did wonder why they simply hadn’t silenced you.”
My stomach tensed a little. Thankfully, by now, all of this was in the past. Her voice didn’t sound threatening, more like perplexed, so I merely widened my smile.
Elvira chuckled a little. “Back then, my husband’s expectation for you was a quiet life in the provinces, far away from the politics of the Noble’s Quarter. Can you believe it?”
Well, I can believe that it was his expectation. “It turned out a little different.” I shrugged.
“The whole lack of oversight made me quite miffed at the time. I would have never sent someone who knew about my daughter’s background away like that,” Elvira complained.
Not even to Haldenzel? Oh, right. Her own brother didn’t know about Rozemyne’s circumstances either. She definitely kept strong information control.
“I guess… I didn’t mean harm to Lady Rozemyne,” I replied awkwardly.
There was no good answer, and I didn’t want to nod approvingly during her talk as if the best course of action had been to silence me.
“Even with good intentions, lower-status nobles have no way to withstand the demands of those with higher status. With such a disadvantage, it is quite easy to get answers from them. Especially those known to bend easily.” Elvira looked at me knowingly before sipping from her cup.
I was a bit taken aback.
“Do you still think I’m a danger?”
I genuinely wondered about that, since she had already given me her support. It would have been kind of weird now. Or maybe from her point of view it was to cover for such a flaw?
Elvira smirked. “You refused two archnoble giebes in their demands, even saying directly ‘no’ to my brother, without any ambivalence. Not to mention, you complained to Lord Wilfried about his head attendant while Lord Oswald was still present in the room. I do not fear you crumbling under demands from higher status nobles at all.”
The exasperated way she had said it would have almost made me feel proud if my attitude hadn’t brought so many problems. Is it too much to ask for me to be able to stand my ground, but without any subsequent consequences ensuing?
“Frankly, I almost got worried about you being too close to Rozemyne, so I am really glad you chose Lady Charlotte instead,” Elvira added apologetically.
It was a bit funny. While Damuel would have faced an “accident” if he had ever left Rozemyne’s service, my actions had managed to persuade even someone like Elvira that maybe it wasn’t strictly necessary to keep me that close, and certain distance was indeed preferable.
“I would like for all the archduke’s children to cooperate, so I don’t think there is much difference in who I serve.” I shrugged, not bothered at all.
She didn’t have to feel apologetic. It would have been different if Charlotte and Rozemyne had fought over the aub’s seat, but since their goals didn’t clash, I could just continue as usual.
“It sounds quite nice.” Elvira’s tone made the last word sound like “naive.” “But friction can always arise with so many nobles involved, each with their own aspirations.”
She was right, of course. The retainers and the factions had their own wills, regardless of the relationship between me or any archduke candidate. However, I wasn’t blind to that problem.
“It’s not just my wish. I am definitely ready to showcase the advantages of my cooperation over me getting uncooperative in response.” I smiled.
“Oh my, such fighting words.” Her own smile widened.
“My apologies if I talk too directly. The private exchanges with sound-blocking magic tools are quite rare, so I always want to exploit the opportunity and express myself clearly.” I didn’t want to come across as rude.
“Not at all. Please, continue.” Elvira motioned with her hand.
“Did Rozemyne manage to win your support for her pick of my sister?” I asked with a neutral tone.
I didn’t like all those remarks about my “unproven” self from the past almost getting disappeared just before discussing Estelle. It sounded like a big warning.
“She has my support indeed. You don’t have to worry.” Despite my facade, Elvira could easily piece together what was on my mind.
Though, since her answer was positive, I didn’t mind.
“Once again, I am grateful.” I lowered my head slowly, suppressing the urge to exhale.
“Naturally, I am worried, as all mothers are.” Elvira took another sip. “I talked with your mother, and she already briefed me on the situation. Though, she had respected Estelle’s privacy enough not to ask about further details. I respect that as well.” She paused for a bit. “However, it creates a certain discrepancy in that story.”
I nervously waited for her next words. While my face didn’t show anything, I realized that I had been holding my cup for some time without actually drinking from it.
“I can’t see an archnoble girl with plenty of mana ever ending up in a place like that. After the male heir, the girls with abundant mana are the second most valuable addition to any household.”
I see where this is going. I wanted to sigh.
“You were the one who brought her here. Do you perhaps know anything that could be considered important in this case?” She nudged me with her dark eyes.
I didn’t exactly want to share Estelle’s secrets. But the way Elvira talked, she already seemed to have her suspicions. Yeah, the archnoble kids didn’t just get randomly snatched. They were too valuable, which meant restricted movement and strong oversight. As an archnoble, Elvira was quite aware how children of her status were raised.
My body felt a bit hot. It didn’t happen often that I would rather see Ferdinand as the interrogator on the other side of the table.
A memory flashed in my mind. I was listening to Estelle as she was recounting the questions Ferdinand had asked her during their Dedication Ritual. I could clearly picture her tense face. She had a look of a student who had just failed a test and waited for the results to be published.
“…and then he asked why Tia and I hadn’t brought our children with us. You said I should be truthful, so I replied honestly—that I wanted to live and not to be tied to that place, and that Tia probably thought the same. He looked disappointed, and stopped asking about my past.”
I remembered how miffed I had been about that response. As if he had ever saved at least one child without Rozemyne’s involvement. Though, at least, it meant he hadn’t dug too deeply into that particular topic.
Such leeway wasn’t going to be permitted by Elvira, I knew that.
I refocused, meeting her eyes. “Does Estelle have your support?”
I still didn’t want to act rudely, but my look was firm. The question might have been similar to one I had already asked, but there was a world of difference between supporting her daughter’s pick and supporting that pick. At the very least, Elvira didn’t look offended.
She thought for a moment. “I would like to talk with her first, but I do not mean her any harm.”
It was a small jab at my own words, but since I considered her competent in this regard, it felt like a much safer declaration. I just couldn’t picture her coming later with “I meant well, but I blundered.”
I nodded and paused for a few seconds. Here goes nothing.
A sigh escaped me. “Her household was on the losing side of the civil war. The opposing side entered their estate and killed everyone. One opportunistic knight exploited the chaos by smuggling and selling her for some easy money.”
“Did she tell you this before or after you entered Ehrenfest?” Elvira asked with a vigilant look on her face.
“Before,” I replied nonchalantly, as if I hadn’t just incriminated myself. “I was afraid that Aub Ehrenfest might forbid her entrance, so it slipped my mind.”
Elvira shook her head. I could tell that she wanted to produce a relaxed smile, but there was still a slight tension present. No matter how nonchalant we tried to sound, it changed nothing about the severity of the topic. I was definitely nervous.
“Based on her age, it must have happened before the great purge,” Elvira mused. I merely nodded along. “I heard about assassinations, kidnappings and various reprisals, but…” Her dark eyes refocused on me. “Organizing enough forces to storm an estate? I can’t see that happening unless her household was an important target.”
I mean, get one cooperating attendant who will open the door, and it’s the easiest thing to do, I thought bitterly.
“Such a household would have been certainly targeted by the Zent’s purge,” Elvira stated bluntly.
“Children before baptism aren’t regarded as nobles. Estelle was baptized in Ehrenfest, isn’t that what matters?” I widened my fake smile.
Elvira smirked. “I agree, but do you expect the royal family to agree as well?”
“I do not ever plan to ask them.” I shrugged.
My body felt so tense that I was surprised it even managed to make that move.
Please, unlike me, Estelle actually behaves.
Elvira closed her eyes for a few seconds. “Does anyone know on Ahrensbach’s side?”
“Since Estelle’s former master wanted her child, even preparing to make it his heir, it is pretty certain that he knows. However his daughter regarded Estelle as a regular flower, so he clearly didn’t share it with his family, and because of the nature of his involvement, I can’t see him ever spreading such information.”
He would be the biggest idiot if he did that. “Hey, everyone, I defied the Zent’s order and hid someone who should have been purged.” The outcome would have been quite obvious.
“True.” Elvira nodded. “Their house would face swift punishment.”
Once again, we both stayed quiet, looking down at our cups.
Elvira sighed heavily and leaned against her chair. “I wish you hadn’t used Frenbeltag in your cover story.”
What other duchy, then? I looked at her confused.
Ahrensbach was out of the question, and Klassenberg seemed way too stable and organized. I felt like they would have found some discrepancy immediately after hearing that their temple had allegedly sent a blue robe our way.
Frenbeltag was nicely in disarray, losing much of its archducal family. The drop in their harvests pointed to a collapse of their temple. The duchy must have lost a lot of nobles, so there was a lot of flux among blue robes who headed either to Sovereignty or got ennobled. Good luck keeping track of all those changes.
Wait… Frenbeltag is a losing duchy. I looked at Elvira in sudden realization. “Did maybe some noble from there come…” I began slowly, only to pause in the middle of my sentence.
Elvira merely widened her smile. That was enough for me.
I put my hand on my forehead and sighed as well. “My apologies, if we knew…”
Are they in Florencia’s retinue? Charlotte’s? Well, no one mentioned it during our small talk in the preparation room. Maybe they just lived a quiet life outside of the castle.
Estelle had come to the right place; we were apparently the Argentina of this world.
On the other hand, it was also a bit reassuring. I could count on Elvira’s discretion instead of her freaking out about a completely unusual problem. Being stressed about something new and unknown usually led to people acting rashly, like trying to get rid of said problem.
“We will try to avoid mentioning that connection as much as possible,” I promised.
Though, since Sylvester’s sister had already complained about the very thing, it was already out. The best we could do was to keep quiet and hope no one else would dig any further.
Still, I was really glad that Elvira wanted to keep this secret, rather than the alternative. We ironed out a few more details to keep our stories consistent, and then we put the sound-blockers away.
It wasn’t the end of the conversation, though. With Rozemyne back, Elvira planned to involve herself more in the running of the printing industry from the spring onward. I definitely liked the idea. Getting more workers was always great, as it meant I could tone down my own involvement even more than I had anticipated.
At the very least, I was happy to finally talk about a topic where I could offer my support and assistance for a change, rather than asking for it. Elvira seemed content as well, which was nice.
“This was quite a productive meeting,” Elvira remarked as Caroline and I were leaving the room.
Though, a bit stressful. It felt as if I had lost years of my life.
“Likewise.” I smiled. “I am certain that Lady Rozemyne will benefit from her new aide.”
Both Estelle and you.