131: Talent

Today was the first day of Aetheria's Grand Birthday Celebration, and early in the morning, the castle estate was bustling with activity.

Thump, thump, thump~

"Lord Lister, Miss Daisna has arrived."

Hearing Red's voice from outside the door, Lister, who had just finished washing up, responded, "Alright, I know."

O

After tidying his clothes, Lister opened the door to find Daisna and her little maid, Norse, standing outside.

Unlike usual, today Daisna was wearing a more formal white noble gown and a small semi-circular crown, making her appear like a flawless white tulip.

Seeing Lister staring at her, Daisna's cheeks flushed slightly, but her body naturally straightened.

Coming back to his senses, Lister genuinely praised, "You look very beautiful today, Daisna."

"Thank you."

Daisna pinched her skirt and bowed slightly, thanking Lister.

The anticipated rhetorical question, "Am I not beautiful at other times?" did not reach Lister's ears.

Her dignified, graceful, and well-mannered demeanor made him feel as if a spring breeze had brushed past him.

Just then, a surprised voice suddenly came.

"Lord Howard, you live in the Earl's Estate too?"

Hearing the familiar voice, Lister turned to the newcomer and smiled slightly, "Lord Hansenerton, we meet again."

Moses, who had quickly approached Lister, was surprised to see Daisna beside him.

"Miss Daisna, hello."

After bowing slightly to Daisna, he immediately asked curiously, "Lord Howard, do you know Miss Daisna?"

Before Lister could speak, Daisna gently said, "Lord Hansenerton, Lister is a good friend of mine; he once saved my life."

Lister was somewhat surprised by her directness but nodded without denying it.

Upon seeing this, Moses was even more astonished. He hadn't expected Lister to have such a connection with Daisna.

Last time, Lister was rescuing the Viscount Kimler's Territory, and now he had saved Daisna.

Such fortunate deeds that earned goodwill made him incredibly envious.

For a moment, he couldn't help but mentally label Lister and his companions as the "Rescue Squad."

At the same time, his desire to befriend Lister grew even stronger.

After a few polite greetings, Lister left with Daisna under Moses' envious gaze.

After breakfast, the group left the castle and wandered through the streets of Aetheria.

Along the way, various shops and stalls had all opened, and the streets were bustling with people.

Although Daisna's movements were not restricted, Elsid was still extremely concerned about her safety.

Overtly, he had arranged for two high-level Silver Knights to protect her.

Under Lister's faint perception, there seemed to be quite a few people protecting her in secret as well.

Accompanied by the dazzling sunlight and a gently blowing cold wind, Daisna, like an elf, lingered and purchased items at various stalls.

They walked all the way to the main road when Lister's Spiritual Power faintly sensed some people secretly observing them.

However, these gazes were not close, and after just a few glances, they disappeared from Lister's faint perception.

It must be said that shopping is a girl's nature, no matter the world.

The group continued to stroll until nearly noon, only returning to the castle estate when Daisna was still reluctant to leave.

After seeing Daisna back, Lister and his party did not rest but hurried towards the East City.

Although it was the Grand Birthday Celebration, the Slave market was still fervent, even more so than usual.

Entering the Slave market, various shouts and hawking were incessant.

Aetheria's Slave market gathered Slave traders from all corners of the world.

In addition to Slaves from the Pedan Kingdom, there were also many Slaves from other kingdoms, and even Slaves of different races.

Along the way, Lister saw either the fawning and cunning of Slave traders, or Slaves locked in cages or chained, with dull, numb eyes.

He had long grown accustomed to such an industry, as it was simply the way of a world where the strong preyed on the weak.

After circling the market for a long time and asking many Slave traders, he finally found Brutus's friend, Oldington Dick.

Unlike other Slaves, although Oldington was also confined in a cage, aside from being somewhat dirty and looking tired, his entire being was different.

His brown eyes, however, were bright and spirited, completely lacking the numbness and dullness seen in other Slaves.

Oldington's situation was different from Brutus's; he had merely been framed and made a Slave, with no crime of exile, and his identity information was very clear.

Therefore, his price was not low; Lister spent a full 50 gold coins to buy him.

However, he felt no heartache at all; instead, he thought that buying such a talent for 50 gold coins was an incredible bargain.

Looking at Oldington, whose eyes held a hint of confusion about the future, Lister smiled calmly and said, "Oldington, according to your Slave information, you were once a talent who graduated from the Church Academy."

"Do you happen to know someone named Brutus Donald?"

"Brutus Donald?"

Oldington was startled, then his confused eyes became somewhat wary, and he cautiously replied, "Reporting to my Lord, I have indeed heard that name, but I am not familiar with him."

Although he hid it well, Lister still keenly caught the change in his eyes.

"Is he really worried that I am Brutus's enemy, or is he afraid of being associated with the criminal Brutus?"

Combining his previous behavior and the previous statement, Lister thought the former was more likely.

However, without confirmation, he couldn't jump to a final conclusion.

He smiled and said, "Brutus and I are very good friends, so I just asked casually when I saw your information."

Very good friends?

If you are Brutus's good friend, then who am I to him?

Oldington was still somewhat suspicious in his heart; he couldn't recall ever hearing Lister's name from Brutus.

Unable to be certain, he said no more and remained silent.

Seeing this, Lister did not press further but led him towards the Carter Merchant Guild Academy in the East City.

After receiving a report from the messenger Soldier, Lister knew that Brutus's "old flame," Sabrina Octavia, was at the Carter Merchant Guild Academy.

Given this connection, and the fact that she herself was a talent who graduated from the Church Academy, Lister felt he had to meet her.

If possible, he even wanted to poach Sabrina directly and bring her back to the Ironthorn Territory.

However, whether this could be achieved, he felt, depended on how strong Brutus's relationship with her was.

Ten minutes later, the group arrived at the central area of the East City.

Since today was the Grand Birthday Celebration and the academy was closed for a day, Lister wasn't sure if Sabrina was there.

Upon reaching the main hall of the Carter Merchant Guild Academy, Lister walked towards the staff desk in the hall.

"Hello, is Teacher Sabrina in?"

Looking at Lister, who was richly dressed and accompanied by Knights, the staff member respectfully said, "Yes, my Lord, I will go call her down for you. May I ask your name, my Lord?"

"Lister Howard. Just tell her I am Donald's friend."

"Very well, please wait a moment, my Lord." With that, the staff member quickly walked upstairs.

Before long, a beautiful woman in a sky-blue long dress followed the staff member, gracefully walking towards Lister.

After the staff member left, the beautiful woman introduced herself, "I am Sabrina. May I ask if you are Lord Howard, the Lord of Ironthorn Territory?"

"That's right, it's me." Lister smiled faintly, then suggested, "Shall we talk somewhere else?"

"Okay."

Soon, the three arrived at a private room in a high-end coffee shop across the academy street.

Seeing Sabrina enter, following Lister, Oldington, who was already seated, immediately showed extreme surprise.

Sabrina, who also saw him, asked in surprise, "Oldington?"

"Hehe, it seems you two know each other, so I won't bother with introductions."

Lister chuckled, showing no surprise at all. After all, one was Brutus's "old flame," and the other was his closest friend; how could they not know each other?

After the two exchanged pleasantries, Oldington turned and saw Lister's inexplicable smile from the main seat.

He immediately knelt on one knee and saluted, "Forgive me, my Lord, I previously mistook you for Brutus's enemy, so I was wary. I hope you will pardon me."

"Rise, I don't blame you."

Lister made a gesture to help him up and praised, "I am very happy that Brutus has a friend like you. Please, sit down and let's talk."

After the two sat down, he continued, "Brutus is currently serving as magistrate in my Ironthorn Territory. He has already told me about his past experiences."

"I don't care about that. The Ironthorn Territory is in need of talents right now, and the fact that I could buy you, Oldington, from the Slave traders today shows that my luck is quite good."

"After returning to the Ironthorn Territory, Oldington, you and Brutus will help me govern the Ironthorn Territory."

Oldington, who was seated, immediately stood up and performed a kneeling bow, saying, "Thank you for your Lord's grace. I will not fail your trust."

Nodding in satisfaction, Lister then looked at Sabrina and said, "Miss Sabrina, you must have already read the letter Brutus entrusted to the messenger Soldier for you."

"Currently, the Ironthorn Territory has established a new public school and is short of many teachers, so I would like to ask for your help in finding some."

"Of course, I won't let you work for free; the corresponding remuneration will certainly not be small."

"Lord Howard, you are too kind––"

Sabrina's eyes showed no sign of being tempted by the remuneration. After a moment of hesitation, she tentatively asked, "May I ask if I can serve as a teacher at the school you mentioned?"

Lister was stunned. He hadn't even figured out how to poach her, and Sabrina had offered herself first.

He had already learned from others that Sabrina's teaching level was very high.

Furthermore, unlike Brutus and Oldington, Sabrina's main field of study at the Merchant Guild Academy was specifically in education.

If she could serve at the new school in Ironthorn Territory, it would undoubtedly be a tremendous asset.

He said joyfully, "I couldn't be more delighted that Miss Sabrina has such an idea. Currently, I serve as the Dean of the new school."

"However, because I usually need to handle territorial affairs, the Dean position is just a nominal one, and we happen to lack a Vice Dean to oversee everything."

"If Miss Sabrina doesn't mind, you can directly take on the role of Vice Dean."

"This, how can I shoulder such a great responsibility?"

Sabrina said, somewhat overwhelmed, "At the Carter Merchant Guild Academy, I am only a senior teacher; the Vice Dean position is still––"

"Miss Sabrina, there's no need to belittle yourself. Not having served before doesn't mean you don't have the ability." Lister said in a very optimistic tone.

"I always believe that capable people, even if suddenly given a great responsibility, can still do it very well."

"Brutus was someone I discovered among the refugees and directly appointed as magistrate, and he is doing very well now. This is excellent proof."

Sabrina, who was still somewhat hesitant, seemed to recall something and immediately said with determination, "Then, as Lord Howard says, I will certainly fulfill the role of Vice Dean."

"Haha, good."

Seeing her agree, Lister was in a great mood. Those words earlier were meant to provoke her a bit, and it seemed to have worked quite well.

After all, if her "old flame" was doing so well as magistrate, wouldn't she feel left behind if she didn't even dare to take on the role of Vice Dean of a school?

After chatting for a while longer, Sabrina bid farewell to Lister to go find suitable teacher candidates.

Lister, meanwhile, returned to the Earl's Estate with Oldington.

Seeing that he was also good friends with Count Fland's daughter, Oldington felt admiration and an even deeper sense of loyalty.

Both he and Brutus came from poor families. To become top students at the Church Academy, not to mention their hard work, just enduring the oppression and discrimination from nobles was already extremely difficult.

There weren't many people like them in the entire Church Academy, so after graduation, they all wanted to seek good positions in the kingdom.

Unfortunately, without connections, even if they initially secured a decent position through their exceptional abilities, every subsequent step would be precarious.

Now, his friend could be so highly regarded under Lister, which showed Lister's sagacity.

And a sagacious Lord with excellent connections was naturally the best possible situation for subordinates like them.

In the afternoon, a large procession of people and carriages began a celebratory parade in Aetheria.

Although Elsid had already informed Morris about the possibility of an attack, Morris still volunteered to act as bait in the parade.

To protect him and the nearby populace, Elsid had high-level mages from his family set up defensive magic arrays in advance.

In the shadows of the streets where the parade passed, Elsid had arranged support teams, primarily Knights, supplemented by mages.

In a private room on the second floor of a restaurant overlooking the main street, Lister stood by the window, quietly observing everything on the street.

Beside him stood Daisna, disguised. Though she appeared delicate, that was back in the Ironthorn Territory.

Now, after systematic magical study, she had some self-defense capabilities; otherwise, Lister would not have allowed her to come along.

As Lister observed the street, several unusual presences suddenly came from outside the door.