"Easy, one question at a time!" Ana commented, sighing before continuing, "Don't you know the Andersons?"
"No!" he replied, raising his eyebrows in confusion.
"Fundamentally, ours is a family where women wield significant influence, and the responsibility falls on us to select our life partners. This dynamic often prompts other families to extend marriage proposals, with a particular focus on the second son or the first, depending on whom the family leader deems more competent, thus avoiding a civil war. If there are multiple sons, the proposal typically targets the one they wish to avoid becoming the next family leader." She sighed, conveying her discontent with how other families manipulated their political strategies for personal gain.
"Ah, I understand now. In a family where women hold the dominant role, men find themselves in a subordinate position. So, if someone married into the Anderson family declares war for their father's position, they won't receive much support, because in society they are looked down upon since the marriage implies taking on a 'feminine' role in the relationship. Correct?" Lucca asked, reflecting to himself, 'If I said something like this on Earth, I'd be canceled instantly. Thank Ares this generation hasn't reached this world!' Lucca said, making a praying gesture.
Seeing this, Alice asked, "What's this?"
"Ah, a prayer! But continue!" he said, trying to move on to another topic.
"ok!" Alice said, somewhat suspicious, and continued, "That's basically it! The family that controls the Crimson Duchy sent me a marriage proposal with the second son of the Duke!" Alice sighed again.
"Are you worried they might do something?" Lucca asked, noticing it was the second time she sighed, thinking it had to do with the marriage proposal.
To be honest, I'm afraid they might do something to gain favors from my family or earn their trust to finally secure the alliance they want!" Alice replied, clearly with a worried expression. She didn't like it when things were out of her control, waiting for others to make decisions for her.
"Or maybe the family sends the second son to meet you, or he's already waiting for you!" Ana said with a smile, imagining the scene she could foresee.
Alice started to get anxious, but in the midst of it, a voice appeared.
"You nobles have weird and complicated habits. It seems you need eyes in the back of your head!" Ivy commented, not understanding half of the conversation.
"I agree!" Nolan agreed, maintaining his unchanged facial expression.
"Ahaha!" Lucca began to laugh. He had the same reaction when he started to unravel the intricacies of noble life. He used to think that being a noble was easy, just eliminate anyone who disagreed, plunder the poor, and face no consequences. However, Lucca discovered that he needed to become the very type of person he detested on Earth: a politician.
Ana also laughed at her groupmates' comments. Seeing this, Alice took the opportunity to change the subject of the conversation, saying, "Enough about me, let's focus on the camp!" Alice ordered the group.
They passed through the portal and arrived at the capital of Aylinthia. Within 15 minutes of entering the capital, they exited and continued their walk towards the duchy.
Midway, a student asked, "Teacher! Is it much further?" clearly panting from walking for at least an hour.
Observing the student's fatigue, she cast a glance at the other students to ascertain whether it was only her unaccustomed to walking or if others were also tired. Noticing that less than half of the students were showing signs of weariness, she disclosed, "We still have 30 more minutes to go."
The teacher pondered for a few seconds and continued, "We have two options: either we stop now and take a mini break or we keep walking. Raise your hands if you want to take a break!" The teacher ordered, but nonetheless, she continued to walk and the students started raising their hands.
In the end, nothing came of it, and they continued walking.
They walked for more than 30 minutes and finally reached the city, but it was just the outskirts. They could see a fortress atop a hill, not very high but of considerable height.
They entered the city, traversed it from end to end, exited, and headed towards the fortress. Once inside, the teacher said, "Well, we've arrived. Form a circle, because I need to give you some instructions."
Upon hearing the teacher's words, everyone sat down, as they were already exhausted after the long walk to get there.
"Don't sit yet; I need to show you where the field is!" said the teacher.
"But does the teacher only need to show us where the field is? Is there nothing else that we can just sit for a bit?" asked the same student who inquired about the distance.
"I do, but it's not much, so get ready to stand up," she continued. After that, she pointed to the places where their dormitories would be and where they could get something to eat. She also mentioned that the fortress was empty, only housing maintenance personnel and cooks, so they were free to move around. Additionally, during the night, they were allowed to go to the city only with the teacher's authorization.
After that, they stood up, climbed the fortress stairs, and went to the wall. They went to the other side of the fortress entrance and could see a diverse terrain with several rivers, hills, and some forests with a protective barrier.