After finishing her lesson with Carden and stepping out of the annex building, Riersha paused in the lobby corridor when she noticed a small crowd of children gathered around something on the wall.
Looking more closely, she saw that a notice had been posted there.
“What’s that?”
She moved closer to read it. It turned out to be an announcement about this year’s promotion examination.
Within the Arachrene household, a promotion examination was held every year, giving children the chance to advance to the next level by demonstrating their abilities.
Any student who failed was required to pack their belongings and leave the main estate. That alone was enough to convey just how significant the examination was.
One of the collateral branch children staring at the notice balled his hands into fists, his expression solemn with resolve.
“I’m absolutely going to pass the promotion exam this time. They say that once you do, you’re granted permission to move freely around the main estate beyond just the annex building.”
The annex building was situated within the main estate grounds, but the children were not free to wander the surrounding areas at will. That privilege was reserved solely for those who had passed the intermediate promotion examination.
Once granted access, those children were permitted to use facilities throughout the Arachrene ducal estate, including the library.
“I want that too. Maybe I’d even get to run into one of the main family members by chance…”
“I heard that young Lord Riscal turned seven this year, and last year he achieved a perfect score on the advanced promotion exam — the one the collateral branch takes.”
“Wait, seriously? I can barely get through the beginner level, and we’re the same age. Doesn’t that seem like way too big a gap?”
“Well, that’s why he’s the heir, isn’t it? Personally, I’d love to serve someone that extraordinary as my lord someday. And apparently Lord Ricador has officially been recognized as the formal heir this year. They say he escaped the Palace of Trials faster than anyone ever has.”
Riersha’s ears perked up at the familiar names.
Of course my brothers are all so incredible.
The promotion examination wasn’t something only the collateral branch had to take. Those of the Arachrene main bloodline were also required to sit examinations to prove their abilities.
The most well-known of these was called the “Palace of Trials.”
No one knew exactly what happened inside, but only those who emerged within the allotted time were granted eligibility to one day become the next Young Duke.
As for the examinations the collateral branch took, their purpose was to assess whether a child had reached the level of ability that justified remaining at the main estate to continue their studies.
All instruction was funded by the Arachrene household’s budget, so it was only natural to weed out underperforming children early.
I think I’ve heard that this time of year is when the most misconduct tends to occur.
Riersha was well aware of just how solemn the atmosphere inside the ducal estate became during this season. Children would secretly receive private tutoring from examination committee members, and some would even attempt to bribe judges.
The promotion examinations were notorious for their difficulty — and those among the collateral branch who managed to pass the final advanced exam were sometimes given the opportunity to become a personal knight to one of the heirs.
“My dream is to someday become someone like Lord Rosinante. He’s just so incredible, isn’t he? To think that the Young Duke himself recognized him.”
One child pressed both hands together, eyes glimmering as if lost in a daydream.
Riersha had been about to leave, but she stopped again.
It made her inexplicably happy — the idea that people she regarded so casually and warmly were seen by others as truly extraordinary figures.
“That’s right, Lord Rosinante really is remarkable. He was even a Legion Commander, after all.”
Riersha tilted her head at something she hadn’t heard before.
A Legion Commander? What does that mean?
It wasn’t a term that had ever come up during her lessons with Carden. Then again, instruction about the inner workings of the family was something reserved for the heirs, so it was perfectly understandable that Riersha wouldn’t know yet.
Still, seeing it mentioned so freely among the collateral branch children suggested it was common knowledge here.
“Just passing the advanced promotion exam is hard enough to kill you, but to become a Legion Commander, you have to be specially selected and sit yet another examination on top of that. They say people have actually died at the final stage.”
“Even so, it’s so cool. You become someone who can lead the Arachrene family’s armies from the front.”
Command over an army! Riersha’s eyes lit up.
Command authority?
That meant they held an extraordinarily high position even within the Arachrene household — comparable, in a sense, to the elders who participated in the weekly grand council, though their domains were entirely different.
Just as Riersha was leaning in to eavesdrop more on the children’s conversation, one of them glanced at the time and let out a startled yelp, stomping their feet in a panic.
“Oh no… break time is already over! We have to get back to the classroom.”
“What, already? Ah, I need to submit my exam application after lessons today. I can’t be late with it.”
“Right, we still have time for now — let’s go.”
One by one, the children who had been clustered around the notice dispersed and went on their way.
Riersha looked up at the notice board.
It was nothing more than a simple schedule announcement, yet Riersha understood perfectly well just how much weight it carried.
I suppose someday I’ll sit the formal heir examination too, just like Brother Ricador did.
Ricador had apparently already cleared every stage…
Next would be Riscal, and after that, her own turn would come.
Riersha squeezed her small fist tight.
“I can do it too. I can do it all wonderfully.”
She let herself daydream about the day that wasn’t so far off, her heart swelling with quiet anticipation.
And just as she was about to leave the annex building—
“Good day, Lady Riersha.”
“…Oberon?”
To her surprise, Oberon appeared — the last person she would have expected to encounter at the annex building.
⁂
The four Legion Commanders who had just arrived at the estate glanced around awkwardly, taking in their surroundings.
“The estate feels a little different, doesn’t it? I don’t remember it feeling like this when we left.”
“You’re right. There’s just so much more… of everything, somehow. It feels brighter. More alive.”
Aska was the first to voice the thought, and Milia, listening at his side, nodded in agreement.
Johannes, pale-faced and carrying an air of cool reserve, quietly moved only his eyes, surveying the Arachrene ducal estate in silence.
Nothing had changed dramatically, and yet there were things scattered throughout that caught him off guard. Yellow potted plants arranged along the windowsills. The rest area used by the retainers, decorated now in a way that felt decidedly more human and inviting.
It was as if someone had deliberately placed little touches throughout the estate to soften its rigid atmosphere.
But the most striking thing of all was this: the retainers, who had always moved through these halls with stiff, unreadable expressions, now wore faces that had visibly relaxed — open and unhurried in a way he had never seen before.
Something about the unfamiliar warmth that had settled over the ducal estate made Johannes shudder involuntarily, without quite knowing why.
“Sona, what on earth happened here while we were away?”
Unable to contain her curiosity, Milia asked.
Sona, who had been leading them toward the Young Duke’s office, offered a faint smile.
“The atmosphere has changed quite a bit, hasn’t it? It’s all thanks to our Lady Riersha.”
“Lady Riersha is responsible for this?”
Milia furrowed her brow, at a loss to understand.
She knew the name Riersha Arachrene well enough. The only heir among the children who had failed to awaken at the proper time and been sent away to an outer estate — an unfortunate child born into misfortune. It was because of that child that Pernoa had set everything aside, and it was because of that same child that the four of them had been barred from the ducal estate.
She had heard the recent news that the girl had finally awakened, but truthfully, Milia felt no particular emotion about it.
Because they were people who followed the Young Duke, wholly and without reservation — not those who pledged loyalty to his heirs.
“You could say the ducal household is now divided into a before and after Lady Riersha’s presence here. It’s not that she did anything in particular — but her very existence alone has changed so many things.”
“…What kinds of things, specifically?”
This time it was Aska who spoke.
Truthfully, he found Sona’s words difficult to believe.
How could someone who had done nothing bring about a change like this? That a person’s mere existence could transform the world around them?
That a four-year-old child who hadn’t managed to awaken any ability whatsoever could make something like this possible?
