"Your Highness, I'm planning to head to the imperial capital soon. Would you like to come with me and take a look?"
"No, I'm tired of being there. There's nothing left to see."
"Don't you miss your father? Our great king?"
"No, it's just that my father sealed a demon inside me."
"Well, don't you miss your mother?"
"My mother passed away."
"..."
Romon had a hard time holding himself together. This cursed spirit truly wouldn't leave.
As the two of them were talking.
Talia and Nini had already completed the test.
"Your Highness, we were right. You should definitely learn some magic," Talia said as soon as she stepped out.
Hearing this, Romon had a new idea. He quickly said, "I remember the Imperial Capital's Magic Academy offers the most professional magic courses in the world. Your Highness, if you want to defeat the demon, you should consider studying there."
"That's the same Magic Academy that developed the sealing magic," Princess Angelia replied with a sigh. She couldn't bring herself to hate the Imperial Capital's Magic Academy, because that sealing magic had saved the empire. Without it, the empire's army would have lacked the strength to fight against the Demon City. However, she also couldn't look up to the Magic Academy because that very sealing magic had nearly destroyed her life.
She was even more afraid that, after entering the Magic Academy, she might end up creating a spell that would harm countless people.
Romon didn't give up. He continued, "Well, if you don't want to choose the Magic Academy, the capital is still the place with the most powerful mages. You can easily find a powerful mage on the streets."
Angelia glared at Romon and said, "You like the imperial capital so much. Why don't you go visit for a few days?"
"No, I still have a lot of matters to handle."
"Your magic is quite special. Teach me," Angelia said, grabbing Romon's left hand and motioning for him to summon the magic book.
Romon was more than willing, but the problem was, his magic couldn't be learned by just anyone.
He had already tried having Talia practice it a few days ago. Same magic formula, same symbols and runes, and Romon could unleash its power. But when Talia tried to draw the same thing, it was a failure—there was no response at all.
He even gave Talia the Dark Golden Gauntlets, but it still didn't work.
Once the gauntlets and magic book were activated, it was as if they had bonded with the user.
"Lord Romon's magic is only suitable for him," Talia explained. "Everyone has magic that is most compatible with them. While other people's magic is good, it might not be suitable for you. In other words, the magic that suits you best is the most powerful magic."
As a practitioner of niche magic, this was a statement that fit Talia's philosophy.
"That makes sense. In that case, I should write a letter and have some magic books delivered," Romon mused.
Romon was disappointed that she hadn't decided to go back to study, but instead had someone send the books to her. However, upon further thought, considering the princess's nature, she would likely read them and then discard them. In that case, Thune Territory could benefit by picking up the discarded knowledge and using it to improve the culture of the locals.
"This needs to be done quickly," Romon reminded her. "You need to learn a level of magic before you forget about the demon."
"It's not urgent right now," Angelia said, glancing at Talia and then at Romon. "They've already gone in once, so this time, you can train with me again."
...
Two days later.
As expected, the king sent a large number of magic books. Although the quality wasn't great, they were, at least, delivered.
Romon had originally thought that the king would be angry with the princess for her impetuousness, but it seemed that wasn't the case.
Given the quality of the magic books, the king seemed to have the attitude of someone who couldn't bear to throw his daughter away, yet was afraid of her causing trouble if held too closely.
"You can start picking," Romon said.
Inside the castle.
The magic books were spread across the stone table in Romon's meeting hall. Some were new, some were old, but looking through the list, they all contained spells like Fireball, Whirlwind, Lightning Bolt, Earth Spikes, and similar types of magic.
Some of these spells even overlapped with Talia's knowledge.
In the magical world, high-level magic didn't necessarily require harsh learning conditions. There were also spells that had been refined over generations—powerful, simple to cast, and causing minimal harm to people. Such spells were often treated as treasures passed down through the generations. A large royal family should have some, but none of these were given to Angelia.
"I don't know what I should learn," Angelia said with a confused look in her eyes. "To be honest, I've never been interested in magic. If someone likes wind, they can choose wind magic. If they like water, they can choose water magic. As for me, I like rapier fighting."
"We have something, Your Highness," Talia said. "This spell can give the blade a basic, non-elemental magical attack. However, it's difficult to master. You have to focus on using both sword techniques and magic simultaneously."
Talia picked up an old magic book from the corner of the table, its cover already slightly curled at the edges.
Romon didn't get a good look at the title, but Angelia quickly opened it.
"Even if it's difficult, I'll give it a try," she said.
"Then study well," Romon replied, and then walked toward the kitchen.
If he could keep the princess engrossed in the world of books, then her staying here would be acceptable. He just needed to remind her about the demon at the right moments. For now, there were no problems.
Of course, this was just an assumption, but he hoped she would study for a few more days.
Romon entered the kitchen, where Lornis was busy chopping vegetables. Since the princess had arrived, she had to prepare more and richer dishes.
Among them, roasted meat was a must for the feast.
Smack!
Romon lightly slapped Lornis's rear as she moved around preparing food and then casually slid his hand from her waist to the front.
"Lord Romon, I'm cooking..." Lornis's body immediately softened under the touch.
"Your cooking skills seem to have improved a lot."
Romon glanced at the various dishes laid out on the counter. The two of them had lived quite frugally before, with little variety, and it had been a long time since he had seen her prepare so many dishes.
When the family still had some money, they had indulged a little, but back then, Lornis's cooking skills were still at a beginner level.
"I don't know why, but suddenly I remembered how my mother used to teach me to cook. I got some new ideas, so I decided to try them out."
"Cooking requires more than just a flash of inspiration," Romon said, tasting one of the dishes she had made. The flavor was pretty good. "But if it tastes good, that's all that matters."
Culinary skills improve with every bold attempt. For someone like Lornis, who suddenly remembered something from over ten years ago, Romon couldn't help but think...
Something wasn't right.
He seemed to have thought of something and immediately opened the Lord Simulator in his mind.
At that moment, he saw.
The cultural value had risen to 19!
A hefty 19!
Previously, the cultural value had made it seem like Thune Territory was a haven for illiteracy, a goblin nest, a paradise for the ignorant.
Because before, the cultural value had been so low.
But now, it had skyrocketed to 19!
Romon carefully examined the blueprint and quickly discovered the cause.
The increase in cultural value wasn't due to Angelia's large collection of beginner-level magic books, but rather the construction in the forest.
Over the past few days, the president of the Stone Town Merchant Guild had been working hard, and a large number of craftsmen had entered the forest via the forest road. They had already started working in that area.
Fewer people worked slower, but more people worked faster.
With so many craftsmen putting in their full effort, the first building had already risen. It was a part of the manor, resembling a cultural square, with a lifelike statue of a goddess sculpted in the center of the square.
The goddess was draped in a light veil, her figure graceful. However, the lower half of the statue hadn't been completed yet. It needed to be sculpted perfectly as a whole to meet royal standards.
Currently, the statue only counted as a half-finished product.
"Angelia really did something good," Romon thought about the cultural value increase, and then his mind wandered to other things. "If Angelia joins the territory, her learning speed will greatly increase... I wonder if Talia, Nini, and Pito have changed in any way?"
With that thought, Romon kissed Lornis on the cheek from behind and then turned to head back to the council hall.
In the council hall, Talia was explaining the most basic principles of magic to Angelia, similar to how one would explain that 1 plus 1 equals 2 in mathematics.
But as she spoke, Angelia still hadn't grasped the concept, while Talia had already attached a non-elemental spell to her silver staff.
"This..."
"Your Highness, I'm not sure if you've learned it yet?" Talia asked.
"This... it's that simple? Of course, I've learned it," Angelia replied, picking up her rapier. But her face flushed as she swung it, and the blade didn't react at all.
"It's okay, Your Highness. Magic is different from temper. It requires patience and a calm mind."