Fun Territory Defense of the Easy-Going Lord - Chapter 1
Me being kicked out at age 8
“No aptitude for any of the four elemental magic attributes? I didn’t expect such a failure to come out of our Marquis family.”
Those were the words of my father.
At the age of eight, the aptitude for magic was evaluated in this country. This was because in this world where magic was commonplace, it was important to know who had the aptitude for what kind of magic.
The reason why the age of eight was required was because if the appraisal was done at an early age, when the magic power could not be controlled, the aptitude for magic would develop prematurely, resulting in a number of tragic accidents in the past.
There are two types of magic aptitudes that are expected of nobles. The four-elemental magic that specializes in attacks to protect the house and its people. The other is the healing magic that protects the house and its people.
Meanwhile, there is another type of magic that is called unsuitable for nobles.
These include theft magic, which steals physical strength, magic power, and sometimes actual objects from the opponent. The magic of transformation, in which you change your body. Brainwashing magic that uses sound and light to create illusions and manipulate the other person. Appraisal magic to see the details of objects and people. Puppet magic that manipulates puppets and corpses, and many other types of magic existed.
And Production Magic, of which I was found to have an aptitude, was also considered unsuitable for a nobleman.
Production magic is the art of creating things. It is also known as alchemy. This kind of magic basically consumes a lot of magic power, but the things that can be created are subtle. Most production magicians just prepare materials such as iron and copper and use their imagination to create swords and accessories.
There were some who dexterously invented things that had never existed before, but they were rare.
This is because other people with an aptitude for magic could do the same thing. An inventor does not need a talent for magic, and a blacksmith does not need a talent for magic.
Taking these factors into account, production magicians were generally called the most unfortunate magicians.
Aptitude for magic has a lot to do with genetics. If both parents are four-elemental magicians, there is a 50/50 chance that the child will have the same aptitude for magic. Furthermore, if the grandparents are the same, more than 70% of the children will have the same aptitude for magic.
Hence, the tradition of noblemen having a mate who has an aptitude for four-elemental magic for many years was born. If everyone in the family became a master of four-elemental magic, the chances of the child having an aptitude for four-elemental magic would be closer to one hundred percent.
However, the tradition became more and more strict, and finally it was considered a disgrace to the nobility if a child showed aptitude for anything other than four-elemental magic and the next best thing, healing magic.
That distorted idea was not so prevalent if it was a weak local noble or a quasi-noble knight’s house. However, when it comes to counts and marquises like my family, they believe in it as if it were the Bible or something.
“My marquis family is a military family. It is because of my military prowess that my Fertio family, which had been counts for generations, was elevated to the rank of marquis. That’s why, in order to further sublimate my fire magic, I have married Mira, who is a stronger fire magician than the lower-ranked barons. She was a good wife and mother, but her body was weak in inverse proportion to the strength of her magic. You were the last of the four boys who could have carried the next generation of the Marquis family.”
My father, Marquis Jalpa Bull Ati Fertio, said this with a bitter expression.
My mother, Mira, died when I was five years old. Although he had a second wife and a third wife, strangely enough, it was only my mother who gave birth to boys.
So when my mother died, my father was very disappointed. After that, the education of the four remaining boys became more strict and rigid.
The eldest son, Murcia, had an aptitude for my maternal grandmother’s wind magic, but the second and third sons had an aptitude for fire magic, just as my father wanted.
At the age of thirteen and in the midst of being educated by the acting head of the family, Murcia was made fun of by his two younger brothers, who had an aptitude for fire magic. Seeing that the second and third sons were actually treated better, Murcia worked harder than anyone else and learned to spare no sleep in order to become a respectable nobleman in areas other than magic.
His hard work paid off, and Murcia’s position as acting head of the family remained unchanged. The second and third sons were not amused, but they continued to make fun of Murcia, not because of his ability, but because of the age difference.
In the midst of all this, I, at the age of eight, had to undergo an evaluation of my aptitude for magic. My father’s expectations were high because I had been told since I was a child that I was different from the norm, so he had no choice but to have me evaluated.
However, the result of the evaluation was that I was a production magician, which is considered to be the worst type of magician.
My father was very disappointed, while the second and third sons, who had been wary of me, were so happy that they unconsciously smiled.
And Murcia was sincerely sympathetic.
“It’s no laughing matter that a production-type magician has been born from the Marquis family, which is going to develop even more greatly in the future… if that’s the case.”
Murcia interrupted Father, who was about to utter some disturbing words, and said with a smile.
“Yes! Father, there was that remote village, wasn’t there! A village that is within the territory of our Marquis family, but cannot develop at all due to its location. Why don’t you let Van take care of that place?”
“That nameless village? Why?”
My father wondered, and Murcia nodded with a smile.
“Next to it is the Kingdom of Jiernetta. On the other side is the territory of Count Ferdinand. It’s quite a distance away, but there is a fortified city for a defense base. In other words, the value of that village is only to be used as an encampment on the very rare occasions when the Knights are training for expeditions to the Count Ferdinand’s side.”
“I know that. The only people in that village are the hundred or so people who originally lived there. There are no special products, and the Wolfsburg Mountains to the north are home to powerful magical beasts, even if they were to obtain resources. In addition, it is a part of the territory that I acquired when I was promoted to marquis, but it is also a place where Count Ferdinand, whose territory has been cut off, occasionally sends his knights to harass us.”
My father interrupted Murcia and said that, then looked up as if he had just noticed.
“Right, I get it. In other words, if we leave the frontier village to Van, even if it’s a lost cause, it won’t be a problem to place the Knights right next to Count Ferdinand’s domain. Besides, the newly acquired territory still has little loyalty to the Marquis family. If a member of the Marquess family is posted there, even if it’s just for the sake of formality… I see. Well done, Murcia, for finding a use for a useless person.”
Murcia responded with a deep bow of his head.
And so, my father ordered me to assume the position of the nominal lord of the remote village. In a good mood, my father, his second son, and his third son left, leaving me and Murcia alone in the room.
“…Brother.”
I called out, and Murcia’s smile faded into a sad expression. He walks right up to me and bows his head, apologizing to me despite being ten years older than me.
“I’m sorry. I believe that Van will be a smart and capable noble even without magic. That’s why I made such a seemingly absurd proposal to Father. If you want to resent me, you can do so.”
Chuckling at such a clumsy explanation, I shook my head from side to side.
“…No, Brother, you saved me, didn’t you? Because if things hadn’t gone the way they did, I could have been locked up, killed, or even had my tongue pulled out and turned into a slave. I will not let the opportunity Brother gave me go to waste, even if it is a hopeless situation.”
Murcia looked up and saw my face. His eyes were wide open and rounded.
“…Van is a genius, after all. I have a feeling that the Marquis who would send you to the frontier is going to experience some damage later on.”
I smiled bitterly and Murcia looked at me with a serious expression.
“There may be little I can do. But I’ll do the best I can. I hope it helps Van in some small way…”
“Thank you, Brother.”
I replied with a smile, to which Murcia chuckled in embarrassment.
“Van has always been a strange child, hasn’t he? I don’t know where he learned to be so sensitive to the subtleties of the adult mind, but he seemed to think more deeply than I ever did. The butler, Espada, and the maid, Till, have been happily reporting on Van for quite some time now.”
Murcia said happily and narrowed his eyes in nostalgia.