Chapter 740: Rebecca’s Unique Way of Receiving Guests

The elegant music that had been flowing softly in the room had, at some point, gradually come to a halt.

Rebecca took a deep breath, feeling her mind finally settle into complete calm.

At this moment, she was serene and composed, her spirit fully soothed. She was ready—fully prepared and steady—to tell her aunt that she had just blown up the largest crystal resonator in the Magic Technology Research Institute.

“Ugh…”

Just as she stood up, Rebecca rubbed her forehead, wincing at a sudden headache.

But she didn’t sit back down, even though she wanted to. She had noticed someone unfamiliar entering this lounge, which was supposed to be reserved strictly for institute personnel.

Findel saw the young girl who had been playing the piano rise. He noticed her expression shift rapidly—from confident calm to a troubled frown as she rubbed her temple. Her face changed several times in just a few seconds. Curious but well-mannered, he held his tongue and quietly stayed where he was.

Then the princess turned from the piano bench, glanced curiously at the three of them, and asked in a clear, lively voice, “Who are you?”

Findel quickly recovered and bowed politely with a courteous smile. “It’s an honor to meet you, Your Highness. Please forgive our sudden intrusion…”

Before a member of the royal family, Findel and Ilaven didn’t bother hiding their identities. They openly gave their family names. The unusual way this meeting unfolded amused the two young dukes themselves—no formal introductions, no attendants or heralds loudly announcing titles and honors, not even a steward presenting documents. They simply walked in, said their names, and greeted the empire’s princess…

Everything was so simple and unpretentious, just like… ordinary people.

What would be a perfectly normal visit to most was a surprisingly novel experience for these two young nobles.

Rebecca didn’t overthink it. She was just a little surprised, then gave the three strangers a quick once-over. In this place, surely no one would be foolish enough to impersonate the heirs of the Northern and Western dukedoms, right?

“I did hear you were coming,” she said, scratching her hair—a gesture that, by noble etiquette standards, was rather rude, leaving Findel and Ilaven momentarily stunned. The quiet, poised pianist they had just known suddenly seemed a bit unsteady in their memories. “My aunt mentioned it over dinner a couple of days ago. But I hadn’t heard anything about someone named Philm…”

At the mention of his name, Philm, who had been tense and frozen since arriving, suddenly snapped out of his daze. The solemn, rehearsed “formal meeting with royalty” he had imagined countless times was completely useless now. The situation was unfolding far beyond his expectations. He let his foggy mind guide his body to respond, awkwardly bowing before pulling out the box he had brought.

“Princess Rebecca… I’m Philm, from Baren. I brought… I brought something with me. Mr. Kord wrote me a letter of recommendation. He said you might be interested in my idea. It’s here… please wait a moment, it needs to be assembled…”

Philm’s words were halting and jumbled, but Rebecca showed no impatience. She had already noticed the box contained some magic-tech parts—common, even crude and outdated, but still intriguing.

Philm quickly began assembling the pieces, which would take a little time. Ilaven didn’t want the atmosphere to cool off, so he broke the silence.

“Your Highness, if I may be so bold, your performance just now was truly outstanding. I was nearly lost in it… even the finest court musicians might not match that.”

Complimenting a woman appropriately, steering the conversation toward music and art—these were essential skills for a noble, almost a duty. Ilaven was mindful of the role he represented here and hoped to make a good impression on the princess. Even if friendship wasn’t possible, at least leave a positive mark.

Rebecca didn’t think much of it. She watched Philm busy with his work and casually replied, “Ah, I learned piano from a teacher, and I also study martial arts. Honestly, I don’t know if I’m any good—I just use it to calm myself down. After all, I just blew something up…”

Ilaven blinked in surprise.

Rebecca ignored his slightly stunned expression and continued casually (after all, since he had spoken first, it was polite to respond). “So, you’re all here to study, right? Going to the Imperial Academy?”

“Yes,” Findel nodded with a smile. “Aunt Victoria thinks I should learn things I can’t get at the castle. She tasked me with entering the Imperial Academy as an ordinary student. And she mentioned you, saying you’re a very special and outstanding princess I should learn from.”

“My father said something similar,” Ilaven composed himself and smiled. “You’re so young, yet already a ‘master’ in the field of magic technology. It’s truly admirable—I hope to learn something from you.”

Clearly, with the dawn of the magic industry era, Findel and Ilaven—two friends often held up as “model children”—had now found a third “model child” to look up to.

Rebecca didn’t dwell on it. She glanced at Findel and Ilaven, scratching her chin. “Learn from me, huh… that’s not a problem. But how’s your foundation?”

“Foundation?” The two heirs looked puzzled, not quite understanding.

“Basic subjects. How are your math and science grades?”

“Decent,” Findel answered cautiously, unsure why the conversation had suddenly turned so serious. “I specialize in frost magic, so naturally I’m familiar with basic array configurations and calculations…”

Ilaven added, “I’m skilled in arcane magic and have some grasp of math and science as well.”

“Decent and some grasp aren’t enough. I’ll get you some beginner problem sets later, but I doubt you can keep up with the current runes course,” Rebecca said, watching Philm place a crystal on a rune board. “Have you studied rune logic?”

“We’ve only heard of it, never actually studied it.”

“That’s another no-go…” Rebecca scratched her head. “What about mechanical principles and mechanics?”

“Uh…” Findel’s expression grew awkward. “Do we really need to learn those?”

“Of course! If you don’t know mechanics and physics, you’ll fall even further behind in my classes!” Rebecca’s eyes widened. “Your foundation is seriously lacking. I thought you’d at least have done some prep before coming. So, you must know some basic physics, right?”

Findel and Ilaven exchanged blank looks.

Rebecca saw their expressions and immediately understood. Hands on hips, she sighed. “If you’re no good at that either… then you better be tough.”

Findel and Ilaven blinked in confusion.

The conversation hit a dead end, the atmosphere growing awkward. But before the mix of misunderstandings, stubbornness, subtlety, and bluntness could drag on, Philm finally finished his setup.

“I’m done, Your Highness. Please take a look…”

Rebecca instantly dropped the half-finished topic of forming a study group and leaned in, curious, as Philm activated a holographic projection.

As the short clip played, Philm explained what his “Magic Shadow Play” invention was all about, sharing the inspiration behind it and the support and praise he’d received from the great merchant Kord.

Rebecca’s eyes widened as she watched for several minutes. Once she grasped Philm’s idea, she opened her mouth in amazement.

“Wow…”

“Your Highness, what do you think?”

“From a pure magic-tech standpoint, it’s nothing spectacular. But I’m sure my ancestor would be very interested!” Rebecca suddenly looked up, excitedly telling Philm, “This idea is really interesting!”

“Ancestor…” Philm was startled by her enthusiasm, then realized what she meant. “You mean, His Majesty the Emperor?!”

“Pack up your things… Hey, don’t use those old parts. Just bring that crystal. I’ll give you a brand-new magic network terminal,” Rebecca was already fired up by the new technology, bustling about before the others could react. “Add an amplifier… You didn’t bring a project proposal or anything? Well, that’s understandable—it’s not formalized yet. Just bring these. Come on, come on, I’ll take you to meet my ancestor. Oh, this thing is really good!”

…

“They went to the Magic Technology Research Institute?”

Back at Cecil Palace, Gawain soon received the latest intelligence from the military agency about the movements of the two young men.

Since they were heirs to the Northern and Western dukedoms, he had Amber’s agents keep an eye on them.

Amber nodded. “A young man named Philm is traveling with them. He seems to have brought something interesting. The president of the Carol Commercial Association personally wrote a letter of recommendation. The three of them went straight to see Rebecca.”

“So Rebecca was the one who ‘received’ them first,” Gawain chuckled. “I wonder if that girl caused any trouble.”

“I thought you’d be worried… What was that line you said?” Amber recalled one of Gawain’s teasing remarks. “Oh right, worried some outsider pig might root through your family’s cabbage patch—since they’re all young, right?”

“…I’m more worried the cabbage might beat up the pig,” Gawain’s lip twitched. “That Philm kid seems okay, but I’m afraid Findel and Ilaven will stick to noble etiquette and be too polite with Rebecca. You know how it is—anyone who befriends Rebecca has to be both talented and capable. And now she’s a princess… I should give them a heads-up.”

Amber was speechless.

Just then, hurried footsteps echoed down the corridor outside, abruptly interrupting their conversation.

The steps were somewhat chaotic, as if more than one person was coming.

One of the breaths belonged to Rebecca.

Gawain was nearly done drafting apology letters to Victoria and Bertram…

The next moment, the study room door burst open, and Rebecca came in, beaming. “Ancestor! I’ve got something great to show you!!”

“Something great?”

Gawain asked, curious, then saw three figures behind her.

Three young people: one tall with silver hair and northern features, one shorter with brown hair, and one with short blond hair and a well-proportioned build.

They all looked a bit awkward, as if Rebecca had swept them in so quickly they hadn’t had time to prepare mentally. The blond young man seemed especially nervous and reserved.

None of them appeared injured.

Gawain finally breathed a sigh of relief and set aside the draft of his apology letter for the time being. He glanced at Rebecca and said, “At least remember to knock next time.”

Rebecca let out a small, startled “Ah!” Then, in front of the three young men’s bewildered stares, she quietly closed the door again and knocked from outside. “Ancestor! Ancestor! I’m knocking!”

“Come in,” Gawain replied, his tone full of resignation.

“Ancestor!” Rebecca burst in excitedly, pulling the blonde young man—and the box he was holding—along with her. “I’ve got something really interesting to show you!”

(Everyone, the special manga open comment feature has been live for three weeks now—go check it out and show some support! By the way, I just remembered to mention this, so maybe a bit late…)

(The End of this Chapter)