Rufus did not beat around the bush, he knew that the weak link of the Ravenna household was Arthur. Arthur was mistreated, and with eyes, he could see it in the way Blair and Royce dismissed him. That very well-meant that Arthur could hold resentment, and this resentment could be used and sharpened into betrayal.
If Arthur was willing, Rufus could use him as a dagger aimed straight at his own family. And if he wasn't? Well, the political marriage hanging over the boy's head was leverage enough. With it, Rufus could blackmail him and make him his pawn.
This way two birds could be killed with one stone. The Ravenna family would be exposed for fraud and executed, and through Arthur's adoption, Terian would fall into Rufus's grasp. In one move, the Ravenna would fall, and Rufus would rise, claiming both the county and Terian, all thanks to this unsuspecting boy. Rufus looked at Arthur with a cold, greedy glint in his eyes. However, Arthur knew exactly what was going on.
"I see… and why have you told me this?" Arthur asked with a cold expression on his face.
"I told you this so we can negotiate a deal. You are being used by them, but I can see your potential. You are a smart man, and I'm sure you understand the benefit of partnering with me." Rufus mistook the young man's calm demeanour for agreement and a willing naivety.
"Very well, Sir Rufus. I do know of the alteration of financial records. I can provide you with a complete ledger." Arthur said, as Rufus's eyes widened. He was in genuine surprise, and his face was clearly filled with greed.
"A complete ledger? You... you are a very clever young man, Arthur." He chuckled to himself, and it was getting hard to hold his pleasant act in infront of the weight of his excitement.
"There will be a cost, of course," Arthur replied calmly, his own gaze was just as cold as the cold coastal winds.
"Of course. What is the price you want? Tell me, young man?" Rufus said.
"There are three things that I want." Arthur's expression remained impassive as he spoke his terms, "First, is for you to find a way to remove my name from the family registry in the imperial court proceedings. Tax evasion is a serious crime, and if something goes wrong, I could end up in trouble aswell."
"Yes, of course, I planned to do that anyway. The first part is very easy," Rufus said with a wave of his hand.
"Second, I need you to set up a boat with enough materials for three people to sail for a week. I need the sailor to be Terian." Arthur stated with a clear and firm voice. "A boat?" Rufus's looked at him questioningly, the demand surprising him. "With a few weapons, nothing fancy." Arthur added as he stared into Rufus's stunned eyes.
"What do you plan to do with that boat and those weapons?" Rufus said. His smiling, pleasant face was now gone, and a serious one took its place.
Arthur simply smiled at him. "I plan to approach Terian myself, without the Empire's influence," Arthur said.
"Young man! Do you know what it means to approach Terian without approval? There's no guarantee that you will be spared by their king." Rufus warned him, but he was filled with greed because he was beginning to understand the magnitude of the opportunity Arthur was presenting him. For essentially minor things, in the near future he could get control over the entirety of Ravenna.
"It would be best for me to gain an alliance with Terian. After my father realises that I am the one who leaked this information, he will have undoubtedly try to kill me. Because of the tensions between Ravenna and Terian, he would be unable to do anything this way." Arthur replied calmly, what he said made sense to the old man.
"Alright, that makes sense." Rufus said. "What is your third term, young man?"
"It's pretty straightforward to ensure that we get our hands on Ravenna, Sir Rufus. Have the Imperial notary create a sealed codicil that names me as a temporary executor of Ravenna assets after investigations when executions are done." Arthur said. Rufus's eyes widened, and the smile fell away completely. The old man began to laugh.
"A temporary executor… I see, you are more scheming than I thought. This is wonderful, we will have immediate access and won't need to wait for any edicts." Rufus said, "Very well, that was a great negotiation, young man. Let's talk about the ledger later, after I complete the first and third terms of your condition. The second term you asked for might take some time. Next time we speak, you have the ledger ready."
The old man held out his hand. Arthur took the man's hand and shook it. The old pervert's grip was not as strong as before, but he could sense the deep satisfaction in the man's expression.
The next day Arthur was woken up by the warm morning sun streaming through his window and onto his face. He sat up and stretched, feeling the aches from his intense mana cultivation the day before. A knock on the door broke his concentration, and he called out for the person to enter.
It was that same maid from last night, the young brown haired girl. She entered and bowed politely before speaking.
"Good morning, young master. You have an invitation from the head trainer of the White Wolves. He has invited you to see their morning routine and train with them." She said.
Arthur's eyes widened in surprise, though this was not unexpected. He knew that last night at dinner, the mention of the physical test by Rufus had made him nervous. This was the last-minute training Father decided to do. He gave a curt nod and said, "Tell the trainer I will come."
The maid bowed and then quickly left to do her duty. Arthur decided to get ready and then went to his wardrobe, grabbing a simple white shirt that could be used for training and trousers, before heading out the door. He made his way towards the courtyard, ready to meet the White Wolves trainer.
As he was making his way to the designated area where the White Wolves trained, someone was running up from behind him, shouting his name.
"Young master Arthur!"
Arthur turned around to see a familiar face, it was the young mage from yesterday, the one he had saved from choking on sandwiches in the garden. She was running towards him at full speed even though she was in her uniform.
'How is she even able to run in that?' Arthur thought to himself.
She ran from all the way across the hall and arrived right in front of Arthur. Arthur moved back slightly as he was kind of scared of her, she was weird after all. She was panting and looked up at him with a smile.
"Shall we train your…" she said but suddenly stopped and looked around, making sure there wasn't anyone around to hear, then continued in a quieter tone, "Your mana training? We have to complete the most important step: creating mana connections and your first circle in your mana heart."
Arthur shook his head as he replied, "Sorry, I have to train with the White Wolves today. They have invited me to come train with them. We can start this afternoon?"
She looked disappointed, but then her eyes lit up. She moved closer to Arthur, looking him up and down like she was searching for something.
"Something about you changed. I can't put my finger on it, but I can sense it," she said, and then she seemed like she had made up her mind. "I'll accompany you to the training. I am free today, as it's my day off. If that's okay, young master?"
Arthur sighed but reluctantly agreed, nodding his head affirmatively, "Sure, I guess. But it will be very physical, not meant for a mage."
"I know. I won't be participating, but I'll watch you. I have been interested in what kind of training those swordsmen even do," she said, closing her eyes and seemingly patting herself in her mind for getting this chance. She suddenly seemed to realise something and looked urgently at Arthur.
"But young master, you are a mage. Will you truly be alright in the training?" she asked.
After a while, Arthur and Bella arrived at the designated training grounds. The sounds of shouting could be heard well before they arrived.
As they stepped through the archway into the training courtyard, the sight before them was very overwhelming. The loud clashing of metal made by the swords was simply too loud, paired with the shouting made by men who were clearly pushing themselves to the limit, it was a bit much for Bella. Dozens of swordsmen were sparring in pairs, making a line on either side of the pathway. Some of the trainees were shirtless despite the morning being chilly, they were all covered in sweat.
Bella scrunched her nose immediately and pinched it shut with two fingers to block out the smell. "Ugh… the smell. Honestly, young master, I don't know how they can live like this. Sweating and rolling around like animals."
She laughed lightly, as if finding her own words funny. "They are all brutes. I'm glad you're not a swordsman." She said, looking at Arthur.
Arthur gave her a faint smile, though he silently disagreed with her. Being either a mage or a swordsman had its advantages and disadvantages. Mages lacked the physicality of a swordsman and could easily lose in close combat. This was true the other way around aswell, mages had the upper hand when it came to long-distance fighting.
Suddenly a large and booming voice came from besides them, startling them.
"Ah, there you are!" The deep voice said. Walking across the training grounds towards them was a man with wide shoulders and a scar running down his cheek diagonally. His uniform was a bit more sophisticated than the trainees' but still simple enough to know that this was the man in charge. This was Head Instructor, the one who had extended the invitation that morning.