We set off for the last leg of our journey after having lunch the next day. The line of carriages had tripled in size as a lot of nobles were already resting in Nirad City.
Today was the perfect time to leave as they would make it to the capitol just 2 days before the celebration began. This was a normal thing that happened every year as nobles liked to minimize the amount of time wasted.
Every moment where they could solidify their strength, wealth, and power was more important than attending to the vainness of a birthday week.
That's why everyone made it just before everything began.
"She already could enough to travel?" asked Celes. She had her head sticking out the carriage window and looked at the many carriages in front of us.
We were no longer the highest-ranked nobles in the convoy. A duke's family had been relaxing in Nirad and also chose to leave today.
But, there was someone ahead of even the duke's convoy. It was a single carriage made with shiny blue and gold metals. It was somewhat bigger than my own carriage but not by much.
The carriage was surrounded by soldiers in brilliant silver armor. They held spears or swords as they diligently jogged alongside the speedily moving carriage.
"Don't underestimate the capability of a 9th-tier healer. Especially one that works for the imperial family," I replied.
That single carriage belonged to General Karina Zlatan. One of the strongest warriors in our empire and the emperor's elder sister. She was already healed enough to move around.
It was surprising for Celes to see how badly injured that woman was yet how quickly she recovered.
"A 9th tier healer is often capable of simultaneously healing 5 or more 9th tiers during a battle alone. Focusing your healing on a single person for a whole day makes it exponentially effective. It is no surprise that the general can already move." Elina explained.
"Damn, isn't that kind of too powerful? I remember how our school's healers could barely heal a single person at a time. Even they required a lot of breaks in between." Celes said.
"That's because all those healers were under the 7th tier. Once someone reaches the 7th tier healing magic, the spells become exponentially stronger. " I explained.
As for the reason why there's such a gap between 7th-tier healers and the ones under them, I have no idea. Healers don't talk about their spells openly. They are some of the most secretive of mages.
"Aunt Jenny hasn't been able to improve her healing spells for a while. She says that there's something big missing but can't elaborate on what it is." Elina added with a sigh.
"Breaking past the 6th tier and entering the 7th is considered the second hardest hurdle right?" Celes.
This was something common for all mages but not warriors. Our second hardest hurdle was the 8th tier. The 9th tier is the highest hurdle for both types.
"Yeah. Though most mages don't have insane improvement after entering the 7th tier, they still get a higher boost compared to what they did in other tiers. Only for healers is the 7th tier strangely profound."
Elina then went on to explain that Aunt Jenny had been stuck at the peak of the 6th-tier healing mage for about 5 years now. She had been struggling to go any further as something fundamental seemed to be blocking her way.
Her mental was already starting to suffer with years of stagnation, no with the betrayal of her husband, things only got worse.
Before we left, Elina had talked to her aunt and learned that all progress had ceased for the woman as she was hard-stuck.
"Mages have it really hard." Celes said with concern after hearing all this.
"Haa, we really do have it hard." Elina sighed in exasperateation. I already knew it was going to be hard for ELina, especially with her mediocre talent.
At least the blood gem should be helping her break past that restrictive shell that held back mages.
***
***
Hours went by as the girls absorbed the gem and took passional breaks in between. they would either strike up a conversation or lie on the floor of my carriage, tired out.
I just watched over them as I read the pile of books given to me. I had already gotten through most of the basic books.
I was currently on some more advanced material, most of which seemed to be written by some of the elders that I know.
"Alright girls, finish up. It's time for dinner." I remind the girls.
They quickly finish the cycle they were on and join me as we exit the carriage. The sun had already set as most nobles' camps had been fully set up.
All that was left for their cooks to finish making the meals. They would then eat it and retire early. This is the second to last night of eating in the wilderness.
Tomorrow night would be last as we would reach the capitol towards the end of the day after.
"Ooooh, that smells like chicken." said Celes. She had a great sense of smell when it came to food.
Even though she was devout to beef, she didn't mind the occasional taste of chicken. I also preferred beef more but I ate it less than I ate chicken.
As much as I liked beef more, my stomach seemed to have a hard time digesting it. It has a much easier time with chicken.
Once my father, Risa, and the elders had arrived at the table, we started to talk about miscellaneous things. The elders especially brought up random things that we could do in the capitol on the days we didn't have obligations.
While we were talking, a knight in silver armor approached us. We stopped our conversation as our attention went to the middle-aged man with a well-kept beard.
"Good evening to the respected head, heir, and elders of Vornix Marquisdom." he said respectfully. He then looked to Elina and said "Greetings to their of the Zocratne Earldom."
Unlike most commoners, the man didn't offer even a slight bo. He didn't need to since he was a powerful knight under the imperial family. These knights may not be nobles but they aren't commoners either.
All of us acknowledged the man's greeting using a low nod
"I am Sir Mat Orvil, a knight under Lady Katrina Zlatan." he introduced himself after receiving the nods.
Given the uniqueness of his silver armor, we already knew which he belonged
"State your business Sir Orvil." my father asked formally.
We Vornixs didn't care much for pleasantries and preferred to get straight to business.
"As you wish. Her grace has invited your son to her camp. She wishes to have a short conversation with the heir." he revealed calmly.
Everyone was taken aback for a moment as they were not expecting this but calmed down pretty quickly. They kind of knew this was going to happen.
I would be joining the SSB which is under the general command. I had even used my affiliation to communicate the situation to her rescue team. It was only fair to at least talk to me once.
"May I?" I asked my father for permission as it is basic etiquette.
'Go ahead." he said without delay. The faster I went, the faster I could come back.
I didn't want to miss out on dinner with the family so I hastily got up. I excused myself from the group and followed the knight.
Once we had exited the Vornxi camp, we had entered the duke's camp. I believe it was the Duke of Hermon's camp but we didn't have any interaction with them.
The Hermon family are quite the isolationists who spend all their time taking care of their territory. The only time anyone every sees them is if you visit their territory or hen they come out for the emperor's birthday.
Sir Orvil didn't utter a word as he walked with powerful and rhythmic steps. It seems that he was someone who had spent a long time in the military. His air of discipline was pronounced.
I didn't try to talk to him either as we didn't really have anything to say.
We quickly got through the duke's section of the camps and got to a nice clearing where the soldiers had set up their own.
The many knights in armor had taken some of their pieces off so they could relax. They had switched duties with a group that had been lightly armored earlier. This fully armored group would be responsible for night safety.
As we got deeper into the camp, the soldiers made quick glances at me. I could see hints of curiosity in their eyes.
I could also hear some of the murmurs they made.
"That's him right?"
"Yeah, the guy who went to the supreme sword school.
"Really? Is he that good at the sword?"
'Yeah. Apparently, he was talented since youth."
"I heard his core was damaged by the cultist."
"Seems like it, I can't sense his mana."
I could hear conversations like this all the time. These soldiers were well-informed about my past and recent activities. It would be weird if they didn't know.
As soldiers who directly served the general, it would be weird for them not to know about their next colleagues.
Even though the SSB consisted of strategists, they still needed muscle for some tasks. These soldiers were the ones who worked with the SSB the most. that meant I would have to work with them at some point as well.
"Her grace is in here." Sir Orvil finally broke his silence when we approached a blue tent.
The tent was incredibly large. It was the size of multiple rooms. This entire thing was meant for the general alone. None of the tents I have seen so far have matched this one.
It only further emphasizes the disparity in wealth between royals and nobles.
Orvil and I walked up to the entrance of the tent.
"I have brought him your grace." Orvil announced.
"Hmm, he can come in. Alone." The general's voice came from inside the tent.
"As you wish." sir Orvil replied.
He turned to me and said, "Go ahead." He then proceeded to walk away, leaving me standing out here by myself.
I shook my head and adjusted my mind. I parted the entrance and walked in.
My sight was immediately drawn to the amount of things in the tent. There was a grand bed with a canopy hanging above. There were multiple magic lamps keeping the space brightly lit.
A massive closet full of cloth sat ajar revealing a big set of armor. There was even a display case full of beautiful swords. There were also doors inside the tent that led to other facilities.
I took in the sights as fast as I could and quickly turned my attention to a long and wide table in the corner of the space.
There were stacks of documents and maps sprawled all over the wooden desk. Lady Katrina had both pals on the table as she was standing. Her eyes were glued to the documents and maps as she loomed over the pieces of paper.
She was wearing tight black pants that accentuated her long and well-toned legs. She wore a somewhat loose, white dress shirt that was tucked into her pants.
The top 2 buttons were not fastened as you could see layers of white bandage underneath her splendid figure.
Unlike the disheveled state I saw her in yesterday, her hair was nicely put in a bun. there were some strands that fell to the side of her face and her forehead but that only made her appear more human.
I stood there for a couple of seconds, staring at her and waiting for her extremely concentrated expression to shift.
When it did, she took her hands off the table and adopted a more relaxed expression. She seemed a bit tired though as her blue eyes showed fatigue.
She turned her gaze to me and said "Take a seat. We have a couple of things we need to discuss."