My social battery is almost drained and it's only lunchtime—I can't believe how exhausting these kinds of gatherings can be. Listening to young nobles talk all day about shared gossip, bragging about their family's achievements or their own, constantly trying to be the center of attention... Luckily, some tend to behave when Sol and Arisa are around.

Nobles mainly focus on becoming strong, so they can be the sword of their people. If their leader is powerful, their people will trust them more. That's the main reason why most nobles are the ones who reach high ranks. If I remember correctly, I once read a book that conducted a survey to estimate the number of people at Ruby rank, and nobles made up almost 60%.

I'm already experiencing the difference between me and these young people firsthand. They focus on forging friendships with other noble houses to strengthen those ties for the future and secure support in case of war or invasion. My family has those connections too. In fact, I'm at a party like that right now, and my older brother has been trying to win over potential allies. We're a second-generation noble house, so it's normal to start expanding our relations just now.

I want to help my family build some of those connections—I honestly want to—but it's nearly impossible for me to function in this environment. Even if I wasn't the most mature person in my past life, I had already passed the age where you start to develop some real perspective on what it means to be an adult.

I'll devote myself to being the sword of my family. I'll keep training and getting stronger in my free time. "Even though Sus wanted me to have fun with people my age." As I remember her words, I glance at my right arm, then my left. A wave of emotions sweeps over me, and I decide not to completely close myself off from these events.

"Where are you taking me for lunch?" Arisa's voice snaps me out of it. I stare at her and try to look behind her. She's sitting with a group of four—all girls. "Didn't you already have plans to go to lunch with that group?" I raise an eyebrow, suspicious. I'm sure I overheard them talking about it earlier. At the time, I just shifted my focus to avoid looking nosy.

"I turned them down immediately." She strikes a proud, slightly odd pose and continues. "Lunch with you will be more fun." Her smile is so sincere it's impossible to crush her hopes by turning her down.

Before I can answer, I turn to the side where another girl has quietly approached us. "Want to come with us?" A casual smile forms on my face as I invite Sol. Given how stealthy she is, I know she was trying to startle Arisa—but I didn't let her.

"Yes, I'd love to, Maki." Arisa turns to look at Sol with a strange expression, her mouth opening to object, then closing again, repeating the cycle a few times before saying nothing. Seeing that, Sol smiles triumphantly at Arisa, prompting her to turn her piercing gaze toward me. She's practically stabbing me with her eyes.

We're deciding where to eat—Marril City has several good options. We want something light, since tomorrow will be busy and we don't want to risk food poisoning or an upset stomach. I'm watching the two of them as they throw out suggestions, debating pros and cons, completely ignoring my opinion since I'm okay with anything.

My smile fades when I feel fingers gently touch my spine. Even though the touch is light, it catches me off guard. I haven't activated my domain in Sol's house to avoid seeing something I shouldn't. I slowly turn around to see who's behind me, and my movements draw the attention of the two girls in front of me.

"Let's get a table for four." Those sharp grey eyes and flirtatious smile meet mine. Marga shows up and invites herself along—something completely unlike the first two. From our very first conversation, I could tell she's the type to be direct and take what she wants without caring what others think. She's overflowing with confidence.

My brain kicks into high gear, but before I can respond, someone else does. "Hello, Lady Marga." Arisa stares at the finger still pressed against my back. "Where exactly do you know Maki from?" Her eyes lock onto mine coldly, as if it's my fault I know Marga—which, technically, it is.

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Sol wants to say something—I can tell by the way her mouth opens—then she shuts it and forces a polite smile. Marga chuckles, glances at both girls, and looks back at me. "You don't know, Lady Arisa? I assumed Sol would've told you."

Her smile stretches from ear to ear. "He saved me from a monster attack. He ran straight toward me the moment he saw I was in danger." She moves her hand from my back and clasps them together. "I felt like a princess." Her words make my head spin. I knew she was direct, but not that direct.

I'm not the only one frozen in place. Arisa is speechless—something that's hard to achieve. Her gaze shifts between the duke's daughter and me, clearly trying to make sense of Marga's words. Sol, on the other hand, wears a calm smile, but her eyes are far from cheerful, and the aura she's emitting is full of feelings I'm trying my best to ignore.

"It wasn't like that…" I start explaining the situation to Arisa, making sure Sol hears the full story too. Bit by bit, Arisa's expression changes, cycling through several moods until she just gives me a suspicious look. I'll make sure to explain everything properly later.

"So that's what happened… I see now." Arisa nods slowly, staring at me like someone stole her food and I'm the only suspect. "We're going to have a talk later, Maki. I'll be coming to your house tonight." Her words leave everyone speechless again.

"Marga, do you really want to join us for lunch? It's going to be a quiet, boring meal among friends." Sol completely changes the subject, pinching my back as she walks toward Marga. I don't react, and apparently, no one notices.

"Yes, I'd rather spend it with you all. And it won't be boring if Maki is around." I'm not sure if that's a good or bad thing. Did she just call me interesting? Or am I the clown?

We keep chatting for a few more minutes. Sol does everything she can—politely and politically—to convince Marga not to come. But Marga counters each excuse without hesitation. Arisa just stays beside me, pressing her right index finger into my back the same way Marga did earlier.

In the end, the four of us go to lunch together, drawing plenty of stares from the surrounding nobles. There will be lots of gossip today and tomorrow. Marga's family has the highest rank at the party. Arisa is the daughter of a count and niece of a marquis. And today is Sol's birthday—daughter of a baron with connections to a count, and there are rumors of a promotion soon.

But that's not all. I've heard almost everyone at these social events mention how strong the three of them are in battle. They're respected for their achievements in recent tournaments. Meanwhile, I'm a complete unknown, and my one achievement has been forgotten after four years.

Lunch turned out fine, all things considered. The mood gradually relaxed. Our shared love of food helped ease the tension until we were finally able to talk like normal people. Only occasionally did I feel like I was being attacked from three different angles, with the girls taking turns to corner me. They seemed to be debating calmly with each other, but it all ended with me under fire from three fronts—I felt completely defenseless.

In the end, I learned that Marga met with Mains after I spoke with her bodyguard. She made it seem like an emergency meeting because her father wanted to talk to both of us and tried to downplay the encounter as much as possible.

I used my parents as an excuse to escape the afternoon gatherings. All three of them believe my family sent me to talk to some new merchants and a friend of my father who's visiting the city. I'm taking a short break to refresh my brain from using it in ways other than fighting. It's time to train for several hours. I'm close to gaining a new mental skill related to my reflexes or reactions, thanks to my electric mana. Now it just needs one final push. I hope it combines with my other skill, or it'll be a waste of time…

I lock myself in the training room. Before doing so, I made sure to inform the staff that I'm not to be disturbed unless it's an emergency. They seem like good people, but I don't fully know them yet—better to be cautious. My training goal is to alternate between working toward a pseudo Law or full Law of electricity and trying to integrate my electric affinity into my mental skill. I'm still a bit far from the first goal, though I'm getting closer. As for the new skill, I'm just one inspiration away.

Hours go by until I finally feel like I'm just a step away from obtaining a mental skill tied to both affinities. I can feel the benefits from my regular ice-oriented skill merging with electric sparks. Everything's coming together into one. Just a little more…

Knock knock knock. Right at that moment, someone knocks on the door and tries to open it. I extend my domain to find the culprit. The bubbles of anger in my stomach begin to fade, and I slowly walk toward the door.

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