These Side Characters Have More Important Things To Do

While Ren Xiyang was at Redmond town, Rian was stuck in his guest suite in the Rosewood manor. He was seated at the desk, while Count Aegean stood facing him, eyes sharp as he tested him with questions over and over again.

Rian answered every single question Count Aegean threw at him perfectly—even down to the level where the answer was perfect according to Count Aegean’s views, and not perfect according to Rian’s.

Count Aegean was getting irritated at this behaviour.

“—What do you want, Prince Rian?” Count Aegean finally broke down. “Do you want to spend more time with Earl Rosewood, is that the problem?”

“As expected, you know everything,” Rian replied calmly.

“Earl Rosewood—you don’t know his upbringing! What kind of earl works in the fields?” Count Aegean spluttered. “If he was at least a plant mage, then he could oversee the farmers…but that is no excuse for standing under the sun and dirtying his hands himself!”

Rian remained silent. What he knew about Ayden Rosewood’s background couldn’t be said.

Count Aegean made a sound of frustration. “Your Highness, let me impolite and direct. Do you not understand how Earl Rosewood is enticing you into these acts? He is clearly doing this on purpose!”

“We’re not having a secret affair,” Rian said.

Count Aegean was taken aback. “When did I mention an affair? You’re only twelve and he’s a boy! How would that even be possible?”

“You were the one who mentioned enticement, Count Aegean,” Rian countered. He interlaced his fingers together and said calmly, “Count Aegean, you seem to be of the point of view that I am weak to persuasion and easily fooled. I am not.”

Count Aegean stiffened. “Your Highness, I did not say that.”

Rian’s eyes were serious, directly meeting Count Aegean’s. “I know you did not say it explicitly. Count Aegean, for a moment, lay down your prejudices and consider how Earl Rosewood can help Sedaveria. I may joke about King Rexius Red, but I am aware that, baring no major problems, I will become the Crown Prince.”

Count Aegean’s lips thinned.

“Food security is one of the most important issues facing our kingdom. I would be destructive to ignore the advancements in agriculture that Earl Rosewood appears to know. I am not so naïve to blindly implement Earl Rosewood’s methods, but they should be tested, and if successful, should be disseminated across Sedaveria.”

Count Aegean felt an internal struggle. “There are better ways Earl Rosewood could go about this. He does not need to get into mud himself.”

Rian inclined his head. “Earl Rosewood’s methods could be improved,” he allowed. “However, which nobles don’t have some idiosyncrasies? Earl Rosewood’s behaviour strongly suggests that he cares about the people, but that he also doesn’t dream of the throne.”

Count Aegean conceded a tiny amount. A noble who didn’t wish for the throne themself was a good thing.

Rian’s eyes brightened mischievously. “Remind me again, Count Aegean, but have I told you about germs?”

Count Aegean frowned at the sudden change of subject. “What is this?”

Inside, Rian was smirking. Outside, Rian put on a concerned face. “When I met with my Imperial Father and Imperial Mother, we talked about this concept of ‘germs’…”

Not long after, Count Aegean excused himself, citing that both of them should each lunch separately to cool their tempers.

Rian’s eyes curved, amused. How could he not know that Count Aegean was going to be washing his hands very, very carefully?

 

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Not long after Ren Xiyang returned to the manor, Prince Rian arrived at his door again.

“Your Highness, please come in.”

Rian entered and cast a sound-blocking spell as usual.

“I heard that Earl Rosewood went to Redmond to serve a charitable lunch,” Rian said, as he sat down on his sofa. “You might not be familiar, but nobility don’t typically provide free charitable meals on a regular basis. Instead, they would donate to the Church of the Saintess.”

“Is that so,” Ren Xiyang said blandly.

“Certain branches of the Church of the Saintess like to be the most charitable organisation.”

“Oh,” Ren Xiyang replied blandly.

The corner of Rian’s mouth curved up. “Earl Rosewood, you are an amusing person.”

“Who am I to stop them from increasing their charitable activities? My role is to carry out the duties of the fief.”

“Your definition of ‘duty’ appears very strange to Count Aegean. I told him about the existence of germs.”

Ren Xiyang gave him a mild look. “Oh? Did he take it well? He should be glad that I’m leading the Rosewood fief, not the Aegean fief.”

Rian smiled mischievously. “I’m sure he took it very well, he is an experienced man. He left soon after I told him.”

Ren Xiyang felt a thread of amusement at how satisfied Rian looked. “By the way, tell me about the Aegean fief’s exports and industries.”

“As you know, the Aegean fief connects the Azure fief to the seaports…” Rian went smoothly with the change in topic, detailing how the Aegean fief was one of the centres of maritime trade, and the sort of goods that came through Aegean’s ports, along with the local sea-related industries in the fief. After completing the description, he gave Ayden a knowing look. “Something to your fancy?”

“I’m interested in importing some fish and dried seaweed,” Ren Xiyang confirmed.

Rian frowned slightly. “To eat?” Seaweed was only eaten by the poor.

“Yes, depending on the types available.”

“Making purchases would mean some of that money will go into Count Aegean’s coffers as taxes,” Rian said. “But that won’t gain you any favours. He’d like to leave as soon as possible, and I have a feeling he wants me to leave with him.”

“There’s nothing stopping you.”

Rian huffed. “Does the Earl want to get rid of me already? I’m awaiting the funeral dates.”

“The funerals will be held next week,” Ren Xiyang said. He raised an eyebrow. “Are you not the eldest prince? Don’t you have responsibilities back at the Capital?”

Rian made a face. “And now you sound like Count Aegean and my parents. However, yes, I will need to return to the Capital to assess the situation at the Capital’s hospital.”

Ren Xiyang made a hum of affirmation. “One of my plans is to build a hospital with a teaching department. I recall that the Capital Hospital was not sufficient during the plague. Across the kingdom, we need many more doctors—healers, nurses, and so forth. I have knowledge of how that kind of training is done in my previous world, but Your Highness must be clearer on how it’s done here.”

“Stop calling my ‘Your Highness’, Rian will do,” Rian said.

“Prince Rian must be clearer on this topic,” Ren Xiyang repeated.

Rian snorted in exasperation, before he became serious again. “The training of healers is tightly controlled by Duke Schauss. If we can develop some of the non-magical alternatives that your old world had, then we might be able to set up an independent training institution from the healers, but we must still liaise with Duke Schauss.”

“And the methods and medicines still need to be tested and approved,” Ren Xiyang said slowly, his gaze lowering in thought. “However, Rosewood fief needs increased healthcare capacity now.” He looked back up. “Prince Rian, are you willing to teach me more healing spells?”

“That would cost you.”

“Then I’ll owe you.”

Rian’s lips curled up. “Very well,” he said very generously.

The two of them continued over the healing book on Ren Xiyang’s desk, going over the healing spells for common ailments that even Ren Xiyang could identify. It would be useful to help others, but it was far from what Ren Xiyang personally needed to physically transition.

Rian could see the slight frown of thought on Ayden’s face. “Is the Earl too tired to continue?” he joked.

Ren Xiyang sighed lightly. “Don’t you feel constrained by the structure of spells?”

Rian became thoughtful. “It must be different, as your first foray of magic was unstructured…” Rian suddenly smiled slyly. “I am teaching you spells. Then you should teach me direct elemental manipulation.”

Ren Xiyang closed the magic healing book. He didn’t want to teach…but this would reduce his owed favours, and he was very poor. “As you wish.”

“Well then, go on,” Rian urged. He sat primly on his seat, hands on his knees with full attentiveness.

Ren Xiyang didn’t hurry though. After weighing on his words, he finally spoke:

“Fire needs fuel, a spark, and oxygen. Magic provides the fuel and the spark, and oxygen is plentiful in the air around us. But fire is different from ice. With ice, you need water first. So, you’ll need to draw water, and then lower the temperature until it freezes. Consider your internal magic source. Manipulate a little amount, pulling it out of your body and focusing it just above your hand. Direct that piece of magic to gather the water around you to become ice…”

Ren Xiyang didn’t do as he said, because his speciality was fire, not ice. However, he could make tiny fragments of ice by removing heat from water droplets. Soon, the air above his hand shimmered as microscopic pieces of ice formed.

Rian frowned. In his past life, he had never reached the stage of direct ice manipulation. Direct manipulation of magic without any spells was dangerous. Mages typically only started direct manipulation practice after nonverbal spelling was at the elite level. He had reached the nonverbal spell elite level in his past life just as the plague-curse had arrived in Sedaveria…

Rian understood the internal source of magic inside mages, and he instinctively knew how it felt when a spell would call up a thread of that magic to cast the spell. But he had never ‘physically’ drew a thread of magic directly.

He grimaced when the piece he gathered escaped his control, dissipating into the air. When he tried again, the magic ran away again, making a small bang!

Direct magic manipulation was dangerous for a reason.

Ren Xiyang frowned slightly. “Or perhaps this approach is wrong. Cast a basic ice spell that you know completely. When you do so, study how the magic changes from your internal magic source into the ice. And then try to replicate that directly.”

Rian hesitated. He would prefer to practice this in private before revealing that he was great later. “I’ll do so at another time.”

Ren Xiyang crossed his arms. “You didn’t let me go until I successfully cast previously.”

Rian’s lips twitched. “Very well.” He focused and nonverbally cast the most basic ice spell.

Of course, Ren Xiyang didn’t sit there watching blankly. He was thinking about his own words. He was slowly learning the spells of this world thanks to Rian, but his goals were to understand the fundamental building blocks of magical spells, and importantly, use that information to modify and create spells for the numerous things he wanted. He should do exactly what he just told Rian. He had no problem with directly manipulating fire, but in this world, Ren Xiyang could cast non-fire spells, which meant there was the possibility of him manipulating non-fire magic.

And so, while Rian worked on his ice spell—and creating and dissolving multiple blocks of ice, Ren Xiyang worked on a little levitation spell. Just like Rian, Ren Xiyang cast the levitation spell multiple times on a piece of paper, while focusing on exactly how the magic transformed into kinetic and gravitational potential energy.

The room was quiet but warm as the two ‘boys’ studied hard.

 

 

 

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Rian: It really is fun to tell people about germs!

Ren Xiyang: *nods nods*

Count Aegean: …wait, what?