Half-elf Notebook

Chapter 161 Letter

The incandescent light of the magic mine lamp fell on Shu Xi and the letter in his hand. The light penetrated the paper, but it seemed not to penetrate it, casting a faint shadow of the letter paper and his shadow on the lacquered wooden desk below.

——There was not much letter paper, only one page, and it was not finished. Apart from the beginning of the greeting, there was even less content that could be written on it.

Normally, someone who knows the words can finish a cursory reading in a few seconds, but Shu Xi, who was wearing a dark blue wizard robe, read the short letter over and over again.

It was as if he wanted to thoroughly understand the meaning of every word above and confirm the truthfulness of what they said.

But no matter how many times, the content on the letter paper did not change.

The family seal with a flag and a rose intertwined on the wax print of the envelope silently proved that this was no joke.

Except for the royal family, no one dared to make fun of Eric's family.

"how so…"

Shu Xi threw the creased letter paper on the table and held his forehead with his right hand.

His face was almost completely hidden by his unkempt brown hair and the shadows of his hands.

But as long as someone who was familiar with Shuxi Wayne pushed the door and walked in, he would immediately notice how ugly the expression of the wizard sitting at the desk was.

The private study was shrouded in silence.

Sitting on the comfortable mat surrounded by several rows of large bookshelves, it feels like I have turned into a stone statue with only colors.

In the simple study, there is only a mechanical clock with a brass shell hanging on one wall, which is still ticking diligently.

——The low-pitched sound of the balance wheel and the gear meshing can be clearly heard, as if it is this machine that prevents the time in the room from stagnating.

This state lasted for two minutes.

Until a sigh sounded in the study.

Shu Xi leaned back against the cotton-filled backrest of the armchair.

As his mind became more and more confused, the magic in the air became a little agitated, as if it had been burned by a raging fire, making his figure blurry.

"What on earth do those old guys from the new school want to do? Why do they pay attention to Rick? No... this is not the most important thing. There is no point in tracing the source now!"

Shu Xi's brows were almost twisted into one.

——Both his intuition and reason told him that the cause of this incident originated from himself.

Therefore, he must be held responsible for this.

After thinking for a moment, Shu Xi decided to put the issue back on track.

"What matters is...why they promised to help Rick."

"Giving is equivalent to favors and favours. Are they trying to win over Rick?"

If you want to guess the other person's intentions, you must first start from the other person's interests.

This is the most basic quality of nobles who like, or even indulge in, political intrigue.

Shu Xi is knowledgeable but not proficient, but having been in this circle before, he cannot be said to be completely ignorant.

And now, he seems to have found the problem.

"Rake West is just an ordinary citizen now. Even if he is given the title of adventurer and missing officer, he will never attract the attention of the five dukes of the kingdom, the Eric family."

"This is obviously not a question of identity... rank? The Eric family, or the new school, needs the friendship of a high-ranking silver-level professional?"

"No, the new faction has already established a firm foothold in the kingdom's politics, but it is constrained by the conservatives and has a hard time expanding its territory."

"…Compared to accumulating military power, winning over noble merchants and consolidating the confidence of nobles within the faction is a wiser choice…"

"Friendship is just friendship after all, not a contract that must be fulfilled."

There was no need for Rick to be loyal to the nobles and risk his life for a favor or a help.

No one would do that.

The rather astute Duke Eric would not have failed to think of this.

Shu Xi did not care that the letter was signed by Feshon Eric and not the Duke himself.

In his opinion, the letter was written in the name of the family, and the messenger was a silver-rank family knight.

It is enough to represent the will of the Eric family.

Even if it wasn't then.

When the knight arrived here, the Eric family had to admit that this was their will.

Because at this point, it doesn’t matter whether the Eric family admits it or not.

What is important is what other factions and other nobles think and feel.

Being indecisive is not good for the weak new generation.

“The smartest businessmen don’t do simple acts of kindness.”

"The Eric family believes that Rick has a chance to be promoted to the gold rank in the future...so they are implicitly extending their olive branch in advance?"

"Haha, hiding behind the scenes and waiting for things to happen, it's quite typical of the aristocrats and political strategists."

Shu Xi's expression relaxed a little.

At least it's much better than the serious and ugly look when you first read the letter.

Compared to knowing nothing, being able to roughly guess what interests the other party cares about means he can make some preparations in advance.

"Perhaps I should find some time to talk to Rick. He probably doesn't want to get involved in the boring and dangerous struggles among the nobles. The favors of the Eric family are also troublesome."

After sorting out his thoughts, Shu Xi couldn't help rubbing his forehead.

Prepare to pick up the stationery and envelopes that have fallen on your desk.

These are not visible to the public.

But he didn't plan to burn it directly, maybe it would be useful in the future.

In the world of magic, intact physical evidence is sometimes more reliable than memory.

The moment before the letter is put back into the envelope.

Under bright lights, its contents were exposed to the air for the last time.

"Respected Viscount Wayne, I'm glad you didn't reject this request. Believe me, it will not only benefit the Eric family, but also you and your friend, Rick West.

I hope you can help Lake Wester when he is in trouble. You can take this as the will of the new faction.

The Eric family will directly send a family knight to serve in Leishi City. You should have met him. He will act as a messenger between you and the Eric family and obey your orders.

If necessary, you can give the letter to him, and the Eric family will try their best to meet your reasonable requests as soon as possible.

Finally, please allow me to congratulate you on your promotion to Viscount. My sincere congratulations to you, our Mr. Viscount Wayne.

We welcome you to continue to be active on the Kingdom stage, and thank you for your continued contribution to the New School...