Waking up, the first thing Luke saw was Mahito sitting by the window, looking at something. Groaning, he took off the blankets and sat up, still feeling cosy in his nightwear.
"Finally awake? I really thought you wouldn't be able to sleep properly after what we found out yesterday." Mahito said.
Stretching himself after standing up, Luke went towards the bathroom to freshen up, speaking in a groggy voice.
"I just woke up... It's not even that serious; they just suddenly dispersed by the evening..."
Mahito didn't respond as he heard the sound of the bathroom door closing. He obviously hadn't told Luke about what he had done on his own yesterday, raiding Russel Fellow's base by himself and without consulting him.
He had gone through with that decision because he believed that Luke would not possess the necessary aggressive attitude needed to handle those sorts of people.
Regardless of what might be the 'right' thing to do, he wasn't planning on sharing this with Luke and Higuruma anytime soon.
After a few seconds, there was a knock on the door. He playfully told whoever it was to come, usually because they couldn't hear him anyway.
Not this time, however.
The door opened and in came the same dreadful red hair Mahito had always been wary of.
"Thank you, Mahito. It seems Luke is currently tending to himself? I wanted to ask for his help since Higuruma appears to be struggling with his own... affairs." Reinhard smiled as he spoke.
"...With what?" Mahito responded, his voice and expression not exactly unfriendly, but not welcoming either.
Even excluding the type of person Reinhard Van Astrea was, Mahito had to walk on eggshells around him.
It wasn't that he was fearful of him from an instinctual standpoint, but because he had quite literally no cards to play against the swordsman.
If what Luke said was true, he should also be able to detect the emotions and malice of another being. And if it wasn't already clear, he was made entirely out of the negative emotions of human beings.
'Does he already know? Or is he choosing to ignore it...?'
"The matter concerns Miss Felt. Before we continue, I feel that we should wait for Luke to come out first." Reinhard motioned towards the bathroom.
Not too long after, he came out with fresh clothes already on. Good thing, too, because without Luke, the atmosphere was getting more and more awkward the longer the two waited.
Reinhard calmly explained the problem currently ongoing in the manor, which was that Felt didn't want to participate in the royal selection.
"Lady Felt is very stubborn. She has a deep hatred for the nobility in the kingdom, and along with Rom, she's only getting more adamant about this decision."
'Rom's pseudo-influence would be quite influential on Felt right now. This could go out of hand since Felt can't be forced to join anymore...' Luke worried in his mind, already realising the butterfly effect of Rom being here early.
"Additionally, due to Rom's unfortunate background, he's also being kept under tight surveillance. Though it is necessary for the protection of the kingdom, it has only increased the animosity between Lady Felt and us."
"Huh? Why? Yeah, sure, he's a giant and basically an outsider, but why tight surveillance?" Luke asked, jogging his memory of the random videos he used to watch.
At this point, Mahito interjected, tapping on the window to get their attention. "I can confirm the saint's words. A few hours ago, I was roaming around, and I noticed that wherever the giant was, one of the two lovebirds would always be keeping an eye on him. He's outside right now, actually, with that Carol girl with him."
What Mahito was initially referring to, and what he conveniently excluded from mentioning, was that he was trying to go back to inspect Louanne again.
(Flashback)
But he came across a scene of Rom sneaking out of his room, his movements surprisingly silent despite his massive size, and attempting to reach a certain room before being called out by a sharp voice.
It was Carol, and she didn't look too appreciative of what she was seeing.
"If I see you wandering near Lady Felt's personal chambers past your curfew again, I will personally throw you over the estate wall. Hatred towards the kingdom or not, you will respect the schedule of this house." Carol said firmly.
He faced Carol, memories rushing back. He tried to turn the knob of the door, but it wouldn't budge. Probably magically sealed from the inside.
Hearing the words, 'Hatred towards the kingdom or not', made his heart sting a little. All those years ago, he truly believed he was doing the right thing. Thankfully, he received a second chance to turn over a new leaf.
However, now, it seemed like the world was putting him right back into the fray. The entire manor was essentially the reflection of his past, and one major part of it was standing right in front of him.
"Oi, Remendis, I didn't ask to be here, nor did the girl. If ya wanna rehash the past again, be my guest. But don't think for a second that Felt is not important to me. I'm not who I once was." Rom spoke truthfully.
Carol glared at him silently, her eyes clearly doubtful of his words.
"It's Fauzen now. The only thing you accomplished during the war was bringing Grimm and me together." She made a snarky comment. Clearly, the years haven't diminished her animosity towards him.
"Even if I choose to believe your words, you are still prohibited from entering her quarters at this hour. Please return to your room." Her voice turned back to neutrality.
Rom hesitated for a moment, then, understanding his place within the manor right now, he begrudgingly left the hall to go back to his room.
She stood still in the hallway, making sure that Rom was genuinely moving out of earshot.
Then, she sharply turned towards a particular spot along the wall.
"I know you're here."
Mahito, who had been quietly observing, widened his eyes in surprise at her perception. He knew she didn't have spirit affinity, so it was an impressive feat.
"I doubt I can hear you in return; however, would you consider fulfilling a request of mine? It would be helpful if you could keep an eye on that giant for some time. For his own good and for us. Before the royal selection starts next month, we can't afford distrust in our own camp."
She waited a few seconds to see if she could get a response. Receiving none, she nodded, muttering a quiet thank you, then left. There was no doubt in her mind, nor in her skills. The spirit was definitely there.
Back to the present, Luke checked outside the window and saw what Mahito described. "Yeah, checks out. So... Reinhard, what is it about?"
Two pairs of eyes turned towards the saint for an explanation. Even Mahito was curious about it. All he knew was that Carol and Rom had most likely been on opposite sides during a war.
"Sir Rom was... a rebel leader in the Demi-Human War." Reinhard admitted, his eyes reflecting pity.
"Going by his original name of Valga Cromwell, he was the co-leader and great strategist of the rebellion along with the witch Sphinx. He was a great adversary to my grandfather. Because of his role in the war, he is also being blamed for Grimm's injury to his throat."
He finished his explanation, keeping it concise and brief, to mitigate any potential shock. Though all he saw was the duo displaying only a small expression of surprise.
Specifically, Luke looked like he just remembered something he had been rattling his brain over after a long time. And Mahito looked... impressed?
"As a noble spirit, I understand that Mahito likely does not care much about this matter. However, Luke, you appear to have heard about this before?" Reinhard asked, his face a little worried.
'A government secret, maybe? His face just screams it out.' Mahito judged in his mind, though even he was curious then, how Luke seemed to already know about it.
Feeling the tension, Luke masked his mental sweat and turned around, gathering his things(Just a handkerchief, by the way) and went towards the door coolly, waving his hand as if the matter was trivial.
"Yeah, I knew about it before. I heard it from a VERY high-class individual a long time ago. Don't really care about it much, so don't worry, I won't spill"
Still facing away from the two, Luke opened the door and walked out confidently.
Usually, if it had been anyone else, Reinhard would be required to press for more information to protect a potential state security breach. But not this time; he didn't have the will to.
Sighing with a complicated mood, he followed him out the door, and Mahito reluctantly followed them.
On their way to the dining room, they changed the subject and started discussing what they could do about Felt. If Felt didn't want to contest, then there was quite literally no reason for them to have joined the manor.
Yesterday, she had merely verbally complied with Reinhard's wishes when she thanked Luke for saving her. But after seeing the work and 'etiquette' required to become a noble, she had gone straight back to being an unwilling participant.
You couldn't exactly blame her either. She possessed, maybe, basic-level vocabulary and grammar skills, and now she had to study the politics and affairs of the entire kingdom of Lugunica, all while being encouraged to abandon the habits she had built up all her life.
"I remember you mentioning to me that Higuruma learnt all relevant information about Lugunica in a matter of days. Perhaps he would be able to help?" Reinhard suggested.
Hearing that, Luke burst out with a light chuckle.
"Yeah, right. Maybe it's different for you, but typically, geniuses are bad at imparting their knowledge to less fortunate people. Believe it or not, Mahito here can be considered a genius as well, and he can't teach me anything other than basic stuff." He teased, but it wasn't a lie.
"Thanks for the compliment~ You're not that bad, though; much better than most rookie sorcerers~" Mahito stuck out his tongue playfully.
In all honesty, the difference in talent between the three curse users was very noticeable.
Luke wasn't bad by any means. It only took him barely a week to understand and apply the basics of Cursed Energy usage to improve all his senses and physique on command.
But compared to Mahito and Higuruma, it obviously looked lacklustre. Both of them had been introduced to the system of Jujutsu for less than a year and were already monsters at it.
When it came to potential, especially, Mahito was only surpassed by one other person.
"Just give her some time. In my opinion, Rom is the key. As her father figure, she'll listen if he can convince her to stay. Making Rom do that, though, is the job of the two veterans; we can't do anything." Luke wasn't too worried yet; they still had a month.
The conversation shifted to ordinary casual talk as they eventually reached the dining room, which was absolutely massive. Cleaning these needlessly large rooms must be a nightmare.
"Welcome, master Astrea, Arkwright and the noble spirit." Flam and Grassis bowed and greeted them the second the doors opened.
Luke ruffled their neat, silky hair playfully, already having given up on making them stop with honorific usage. Reinhard thanked the sisters for their work and sent them on their way.
The door on the far end of the room opened, which led to the kitchen, and in came a familiar figure.
"Yo, Higuruma! Nice suit, man. The apron really suits you. Did you cook for us or something? What were you doing in there?" Luke asked, confused.
Before Higuruma could answer, Flam cut in. "Sir Higuruma is currently being punished for engaging in combat with a servant of Lord Mathers for no good reason. Due to his earlier prestige and reputation, we decided to only make him cook his own food a single time. We hope you understand, Master Luke." Flam bowed as she explained.
'No good reason?' Luke looked inquisitively towards Higuruma, who sent back a look that conveyed a simple message. He hadn't told them the true reason.
'You're a good guy, Higuruma.'
After a short while, another door opened, and the lady of the hour arrived with the three veterans.
"This dress is so tight! Which braindead freak thought the waist needs to be stitched so tightly!" Felt already started complaining.
That yellow dress was her 5th dress already, and it was still not to her liking.
"Lady Felt, with all due respect, I very clearly remember you saying that it fit perfectly when we were measuring it on you. Do not act out." Carol reprimanded her.
Unlike most of the servants, she didn't tolerate blatant disrespect and childishness from anyone, not even her direct superiors.
Felt huffed, dropped the act and became quiet. Rom still felt that the situation was too much for a young slum girl like her, but he knew it was necessary. He knew the truth about her and why she had to compete.
Wordlessly, Grimm pulled back a chair for Felt politely and pushed it back when she was seated. Since Carol had already pointed it out, he wouldn't force himself to speak.
"Lady Felt, next time, if you desire, I can personally stitch your clothes." Reinhard happily offered, with only goodwill in his mind.
"Hell no, ya damn perv! It was bad enough that I needed the two shorties to sew my clothes." Felt completely turned down his offer, putting a temporary frown on his face.
All was well, though, and everyone was requested to take their seats and wait for breakfast. The seat on the right of Luke's was empty, and the seat at the head of the table also was. That seat belonged to the head of the manor.
After everyone was seated, the food was brought out(Higuruma brought out his own food).
"Wow, Higuruma, your food doesn't look bad at all. I didn't know you could cook, especially in this new environment." Luke addressed Higuruma, who was seated on his left.
"Cooking is an important life skill. It saved me countless times during my university days." Higuruma didn't brag or look proud. Learning new things had always been easy for him.
And after the unfortunate 'training' session he had yesterday with Flam, he could undoubtedly hold his own when it came to reading recipes.
Flam and Grassis, as maids, couldn't join the table, so they stood at the sides of the head seat. One could see the tiniest smug smile on Flam's face as Higuruma spoke.
For a few minutes, the atmosphere at the table was wholesome.
Felt, still being a brat, took a bite and marvelled at the flavour, but still pretended that it wasn't that good. She still complimented the cooking staff on the food.
Sitting next to her, Rom kept tending to her and urging her to eat more, much to her embarrassment.
Carol and Grimm ate quietly, just like an old married couple.
Mahito couldn't really eat or contribute to any conversations, so he just resorted to bothering Higuruma and asking him if he had learned Reverse Cursed Technique yet.
Watching this, Reinhard genuinely felt good, like he had an actual family. It had been so long since he had felt this way.
But all good things come to an end.
The door to the room literally burst open, like it had been kicked. And judging by who came in, it probably was.
Hair just as red as Reinhard's, but a face much older and withered due to years of wasting away; it was the patriarch of the Astrea family. Heinkel van Astrea.
With a bottle of alcohol in his hand, his presence made everyone in the room uncomfortable.
He slammed his half-empty bottle onto the massive table, the burning scent of cheap liquor filling the tense room. He scoffed, his bloodshot blue eyes narrowing as he glared at the pristine-looking 'subordinates' sitting before him.
"Who allowed all of you to start without me! As the head of the house, nobody can start eating without me present." Heinkel practically slurped every word, with occasional hiccups.
"Since Lord Astrea would not be present for multiple days at a time, the staff resorted to assuming your absence from then on and started eating. We hope you understand." Carol spoke on behalf of basically all of them.
Reinhard stood up and bowed, his face tense and awkward. "Father, forgive me. It is my fault for this lack of etiquette. As their superior, the fault lies with me."
"Don't make me laugh," Heinkel sneered, leaning heavily against a chair with a mocking, lazy grin. "You failure of a knight walk around in your shiny cape, thinking you're a hero. Your ancestors paved the damn roads of this kingdom with their blood, and how did you repay us? A house full of ghosts."
"..." Nobody could respond. Not because Heinkel was correct, but because what he said was so shamelessly wrong that they couldn't fathom what an unbelievable scumbag he was.
"Shut your mouth, asshole! Who the hell do you think you are!" Felt shouted out, almost ready to leap if she wasn't being held back by Rom.
"Shut the fuck up bitch! You're lucky I'm even allowing you and your brute to stay here, slum rats. And on that topic..." Heinkel then looked towards the two young men.
"Hah! The talk of the town himself and his little mailboy." Heinkel smirked, ready to antagonise the newcomers.
Higuruma didn't even look at him, continuing to drink his soup. He had no reason to lower himself to the likes of him.
Luke, on the other hand, wanted to grind his gears a bit.
"Yep, that's me. My spirit and I built our reputation out of helping people and being... well... actual functioning members of society. How about you~?"
"I'd say that's a little too tame, Luke~ Maybe I should make him literally non-functioning~? Nothing would change anyway~" Mahito grinned. Arrogant humans were some of his favourites to play with.
Seeing that even the new residents didn't take him seriously, for a moment, he felt guilty. For just that moment, he wished it could have been different. But he wouldn't change. Everything wrong about him was his son's fault. That was the belief he had to keep.
"Tch." Heinkel stood up, swaying slightly, though his hand remained steadily rested on the pommel of his blade. His voice dropped into a low, jagged rasp. "Keep your high-and-mighty comments to yourself. I don't care if any of you despise me. I know exactly what I am."
After some more rubbish from his mouth, he finally stumbled his way out of the room.
"..."
"What a fucking douchebag. I swear, I want to become the queen just so I can make him my punching bag." Felt said angrily to herself, but everyone could hear it, and nobody disagreed with her.
Reinhard stayed standing, his face unreadable. His mood was down to the point where he didn't even reprimand her for saying obscenities during that entire incident.
"Reinhard... you kind, miserable child..." These were the thoughts everyone at the table had for the saint. All that power, and yet he didn't have the one thing that all of them did.
Luke whispered in Mahito's ear, not particularly caring if anyone could hear him.
"I still can't read my reserves accurately. How long do you think until the next summon? Tell me it won't take a week."
Using the typical process, Mahito gave his reading. "I'd say maybe a week. Are you sure about this? Another summon might bring more questions than it's worth."
It was an understandable concern. Mahito was posing as a spirit and had been with Luke from the start.
Higuruma could also be explained as just a talented friend from outside. He had also remained in the city for a few weeks even before the Elsa incident, so no suspicions regarding his arrival.
A new summon, though...
Unless they were kept secret and had to live outside the city, questions and inspections would inevitably come.
Relying on Reinhard's goodwill and trust wouldn't reliably cut it anymore.
"We'll cross that bridge when we get there. At this point, I just wanna spite that fucker, and who knows, we might run into some trouble that neither of you can handle." Luke waved his concerns off.
In his mind, the biggest actual problem would be with the Six Tongues. A new summon would likely intensify Russel's suspicions and investigations.
He didn't know it, but that problem was already resolved. It wouldn't be an issue.
Due to the disturbance, the breakfast went by quietly and awkwardly. After finishing, everyone went their separate ways to fulfil their duties.
Reinhard prepared to go out for his daily patrols and to meet with the Sage Council. He was going to recommend Luke as a new Royal Knight.
The benefits of attaining that rank might actually help him with explaining his next summons.
Luke went out to make up his own patrol routine, because he had nothing to do. It also allowed him to think for a bit.
But most importantly, one girl left that table with a new desire in her heart.
"You're so gonna get fucked. Just wait for next month, buddy." Felt bitterly spoke to herself as she willingly studied.
Her hatred for nobles was already sky-high, but now seeing a shameless buffoon noble, the head of the Astrea family, no less!? She was going to turn the entire kingdom upside down now.
Heinkel was the proof she needed that her hatred towards individual nobles was valid and that the entire system needed an overhaul.
She's going to love seeing their shocked faces on that fated day.
(A/N: Boring chapter but atleast I've finished with 'Arc 2'. Next is Arc 3 which im excited for because this entire arc was just me having to make my own plot and tensions since every side story for Arc 2 is only for Subaru and friends. I already have an idea on who the next summon is but I dont mind hearing your thoughts too. Lets all get excited for more Subaru suffering yeah. Thanks for sticking by. :) )