Please report bugs, thank you!
"We should never close a door without seeing what’s inside." Kayden didn’t continue the conversation and left with Agatha, it wasn’t just because he was a marquis that he forgot his origins.
The two walked to the outside of the food building and started walking in a random direction.
"Tell me your proposal," Kayden broke the silence before it lasted forever.
"I know you must be overwhelmed with proposals and offers, but I want to offer you a fake marriage," Agatha said. Kayden raised his eyebrow quizzically. In fact, he had everything from marriage proposals to master-apprentice links, the latter coming mainly from combat teachers.
"We won’t have any ties or anything like that, but with this you solve your problem of harassment and I improve my family’s reputation", Agatha explained. Her last sentence made it clear to Kayden that this idea had not come from her, but the boy still reflected a little. He hadn’t thought about this possibility, and the harassment was actually reaching a bizarre level.
At least once a day he had to deny a girl’s request or advance, sometimes even one who had already been rejected before. Probably if he faked a marriage this would greatly reduce these harassments .
"Sorry, but my name is worth so much more than just stopping the harassment," Kayden said. He knew this deal was just beginning. Agatha was silent for a few seconds and spoke again.
"We will provide support for you with all our strength, we currently have 3 mages at the third peak realm, other than that we will offer the vows of loyalty to your house," she said. Finally the real negotiation ended.
"And what more do you want?" His name alone wouldn’t be of much use.
"We want financial and later political support," Agatha replied.
"How much financial support exactly?" Kayden wouldn’t be able to support an entire noble family, in fact he would and he would still have a lot of money left over, but that wasn’t an expense he wanted to have.
"A few tens of billions," Agatha said reluctantly.
"I’ll think about that offer," Kayden already had his answer. "I’ll be in touch in a few days." Then the boy saw his friends leaving the food building and went towards them.
Logically he would not accept an offer from a fallen family. It was clear to Kayden that they were bankrupt and their strength was only a few mages in the third realm. Even if it didn’t cost him anything it was still worth it.
"How was the conversation, Kayden?" The first person who noticed Kayden was Linus and his speech caught the attention of the entire group, especially Sarah, who turned around waiting for Kayden’s response.
"She offered herself marriage and the loyalty of her house," Kayden said with a neutral tone, but his friends were excited.
"She is considered one of the 100 greatest beauties of our kingdom…" Before Heimer could continue he was cut off by Sarah.
"You accepted?" His tone was dry and cold.
"I haven’t given her the answer yet," Kayden replied without noticing anything wrong. After that they talked a little more about other topics and in a few minutes they said goodbye.
Only Linus followed Kayden to his mansion, according to the boy he had some things to discuss with Kayden. As they walked Linus started with a topic that Kayden wasn’t expecting at all.
"Sarah… is in love with you," Linus said. His speech caught Kayden by surprise and several different thoughts appeared in his mind at the same time. "Before you say anything let me explain, she is actually obsessed."
Linus sighed and paused to think of better words.
"A few years ago she had also fallen in love with a boy, she did absolutely everything for him, but Sarah had an unhealthy degree of jealousy. She doesn’t actually have any feelings of love, she likes to possess something rare and exotic."
In this world, nobles were free to have a relationship with whoever they wanted, as long as they maintained the family’s power, so it was not strange to have a relationship before getting married definitively.
Kayden didn’t really have many interactions with Sarah, mainly because she was in a coma and when she woke up they had very different class schedules, but even so he didn’t expect such a strange... personality.
"What happened to her last boyfriend?" Kayden didn’t understand how someone with that level of obsession would end a relationship. "She killed him, her boyfriend cheated on her and she just killed him and convinced Dad to decimate his family, the worst part is they were barons." Killing him was acceptable, not really, but Kayden could accept that. The problem was revenge against the entire family. This was much more than just mere retaliation.
"Why is she interested in me? We’ve barely had 5 conversations our entire lives." "You are currently the best catch in the kingdom. You would be the perfect dating trophy for her." That... was strange. The two talked for a few more minutes, and Kayden was grateful for Linus’s warning. Kayden didn’t think much of it. Her safety was guaranteed for the next 20 years, and if she presented a good proposal, the boy wouldn’t mind having a relationship with her.
Sarah was the direct heir of a duke and a genius above all. Kayden needed all the strength he could get. The boy would give her anything she wanted. Flowers? Declarations? All of this could be done, but... love? No, he couldn’t give her love. His feelings slowly died during his coma. His mindset hardened to survive the ordeal. His only goals were to get stronger, no matter the path. If he had to use the Britten house as a springboard, it would be done.
Kayden went madly cultivating and put those thoughts aside. One time or another, everything would be resolved. There was no point in wasting useful time thinking about useless things.
The next day, ten thousand students gathered in one of the stadiums. Even with this huge amount of people, it still felt like the stadium was half empty. A stage was placed in the center of the arena, and the dean was standing on it. At his side was a large black dragon. Kayden was sitting with his subjects in the stands, along with them were Linus and Isaac. A few days ago a special class was announced that would be taught to everyone, and the dean himself would present it. The main topic was not revealed.
"Good morning everyone," the dean’s voice rang out at the exact second of the start of class. "This class will be about the process of ascension to the mage realm." Kayden was taken by surprise. This subject could not be found in books, not even in imperial books. It seems that this secret was kept under lock and key.
"First, you should know that just cultivating won’t advance you to the realm. Cultivation is the easy part. The real problem is learning about the concepts." Most of the students looked strange, not knowing what this was. "Have you ever stopped to think about what makes a forest? First, we have to have grass, which later allows bushes to grow, then we have small trees. Only on this small path were three steps. An apprentice focused on the elements of earth and water You can do this in just a few minutes." Really, anyone could do this with a little training, it doesn’t even necessarily need to be focused on these two elements.