Chapter 62

Al left Patricia's room and was guided by a maid to Naresch's office. According to what he had heard from Lord Radyard earlier, Naresch's room, where he served, was supposed to be right next door, so even if Naresch himself wasn't there, things would work out.

The lord's mansion was quite large, and it was easy to get lost. The interior was not as lavishly decorated as Al had imagined; there were only some carved designs near the ceiling, and overall, it had a rather subdued atmosphere. As Al walked behind the maid, observing the surroundings, two men in black robes walked down the corridor from the opposite direction. One looked to be in his forties, and the other in his thirties.

Judging from their attire, they were probably mages. Al's heart raced, thinking they must be the mages employed by the viscount. The two men were looking around and seemed to be inspecting something. According to Eric, the lord's mansion was equipped with detection magic devices to prevent intrusions, and they might be inspecting those.

"Hello," Al called out involuntarily. The two men looked at him with puzzled expressions.

"Who are you? I don't recognize you."

The younger man stepped forward, as if protecting the older one, and asked.

"My name is Al. I will be working as Lord Naresch's attendant for a while."

In the past, his grandfather had served as a mage for a border baron. Al had heard the stories many times and had always imagined working for a noble as a mage. Of course, his priority was to master magic, but this was a step in that direction.

"Al? I've heard that name before. Ah, yes, Lord Eric mentioned something strange. You must be the topic of that conversation. You're still young. Are you an apprentice? And you're working as Lord Naresch's attendant? That's quite unusual."

The older man muttered this, but the younger man whispered something in his ear.

"...Lord Wald... belittling..."

Al couldn't quite make out what was said, but the tone didn't sound good. It seemed like some kind of slander. The older man frowned at the younger man's words but shook his head slightly, as if to stop him from saying more.

"Alright, Al. Work hard as an attendant. Just be careful not to get in our way. And, as you probably know, don't use magic inside the lord's mansion or the administrative building unless it's an emergency."

They were probably talking about the detection devices. Al smiled and nodded.

"Yes, I understand. If there's anything I can help with, please let me know."

The older man shook his head dismissively at Al's offer and, as if to signal that the conversation was over, gestured and started talking with the younger man again. Disappointed, Al left the scene.

---

"That was probably Lord Wald and Lord Emerson. The older one is Lord Wald, and both serve my father as mages. Lord Emerson is said to be rather jealous and tends to belittle other mages who try to excel, except for his master, Lord Wald. This is what I heard from a mage who left the viscount's service, so I'm not sure if it's true."

When Al told Naresch about the encounter, he explained with a wry smile.

"I just wanted to hear more about mages."

Al pouted, and Naresch smiled again.

"You're quite eager about magic, Al. I didn't know you were so interesting. I wish we had been closer in middle school."

"Well, you were always busy with your studies and martial arts. I can't really say much, but I didn't play around much either," Al replied to Naresch's regretful tone.

"By the way, what are Lord Naresch's plans? What should I do? Lord Radyard said I should stay with you, but what exactly does that mean?"

When Al asked, Naresch suggested he ask a young man in his early twenties wearing a dark blue tabard. His name was Craig, and he was a servant assigned by Lord Radyard to take care of Naresch. Craig nodded when Naresch mentioned this.

"I've heard from Lord Radyard. Lord Naresch, I have a request. You've been calling him 'Al-kun,' but since he will be working as an attendant, it would be better to call him 'Al' without the 'kun' to avoid confusion among the staff."

After a moment's thought, Naresch nodded.

"Yes, you're right. I'll be careful."

Seeing this, Craig nodded and turned to Al.

"Al, please pay more attention to your tone. This is a temporary position, but while you are employed, all the viscount's attendants will wear the same tabard. From the outside, there's no distinction between temporary and permanent staff. You are all equally attendants of the viscount. Do you understand?"

Craig paused, and when he saw Al nod seriously, he smiled slightly.

"If your tone is too casual, it will undermine Lord Naresch's dignity. I was told you were born into a knight's family, so I expected you to speak more formally, but after hearing your conversation with Lord Naresch, I'm quite worried."

Al could only nod in agreement. Although this wasn't a job he had truly wanted, given the nature of the work, Craig's comments were justified.

"Of course, I understand that you and Lord Naresch were classmates in middle school, and I have no intention of breaking that bond. Please feel free to speak freely when you're alone. However, please be careful when others are around."

Craig bowed deeply to Naresch, who nodded.

"Don't worry, I understand. Craig, could you briefly explain the schedule for the next week and the expedition to Al?"

Craig nodded and began explaining to Al. Naresch's schedule until the expedition included listening to the internal affairs officer of the viscount's family in the morning, training with the knights in the afternoon, and attending dinners with related organizations in the evening. Al, who would attend the tea party with Patricia in the morning, would mainly follow Craig to the afternoon training. The evening dinners were usually held at the lord's mansion, so Al didn't need to attend.

Regarding the expedition, attendants were generally expected to move to the rear when the battle began. Determining the rear in a battlefield could be difficult for those not used to it, but they were supposed to stay with the supply team and healers, and after the battle, find their master and rejoin them. However, if Naresch was to achieve military success as Lord Radyard and Lady Tara hoped, staying in the rear wouldn't be enough. Although Al had never participated in a large-scale battle, he might be able to help with magic.

"Can I stay near Lord Naresch when it doesn't seem dangerous?"

At Al's suggestion, Naresch initially looked puzzled but then nodded vigorously. He remembered Al's performance during the battle with the bloodthirsty bandits.

"Will you create illusions? Or use magic to decapitate the enemy's higher ranks?"

Al shook his head. This time, they were dealing with barbarians, and the situation wouldn't be as dire as before.

"I'll have to see how far I can go... But I want to at least try to find the higher ranks."

Naresch smiled and nodded.

"In a war between humans, it's considered dishonorable to attack non-combatants like attendants or healers. However, this is based on the assumption that the attendants do not participate in the battle. We didn't think much about attendants participating in combat, and I didn't either. But I'm glad you're willing to help. To avoid any accusations of cowardice, I'll inform Baron Oliver that you might participate in the battle."

Al tilted his head. If there was such a taboo, why was he hired as an attendant? Perhaps it was because they were dealing with barbarians, or maybe they didn't expect him to do anything significant. Naresch, however, seemed to highly value Al and was even considering his reputation. Al felt grateful for this.

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In today's update, I used "Lord" (e.g., Lord Radyard) for knights. If it doesn't feel out of place, I plan to gradually correct previous chapters.

(From the wiki)

A tabard is a type of short coat worn by men in Europe from the late Middle Ages to the early modern period.

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