Chapter 17: Taking lessons

"Hoho. Pardon us, your highness. We were simply in awe of you. I am Professor Emanuel Gaeth. I specialize in history, politics, and Diplomatic affairs. I do the theory of it with years of experience."

An old man with grey hair and a long white beard. His peridot green eyes shinned with freedom and wisdom. A mystery behind them. He looked far from ordinary and compared to his aged self, he had a tall and refined posture of elegance and disciplined grace. He wore a long white embroidered robe covering all but his head.

"Greetings your Highness. I am a professor, Ainsley Kelsey. I teach Culture and arts. I work on other minor fields that come in handy to nobles as well."

The next professor seemed close to age with Emanuel Geath. His aura was, however, cold and detached. His smoky brown eyes were calm with a freezing touch. His hair still bore a resemblance to its natural copper-red color. Only a few streaks of grey masterfully styled and greased on his head. He had a mustache with no beard while wearing a dark gray suit. His complementary look fit him well. His fierce eyes spoke volumes of his high pride in his work and high esteem in himself.

"I greet His Highness. I'm Professor Leroy Wellman. A language teacher. I work on the language of the kingdom and I have significant knowledge in ancient language. I specialize in deciphering texts."

The youngest professor among the four professors in the room spoke. He looked strangely odd. It was an eye-catching factor. His high achievements compared to his age made it clear he was a genius. His deep violet eyes and light platinum blonde hair were quite contrasting. It made it even more eye-catching. His attire was simple yet neat, with a white long suit and a hat to compliment it. His rare features made it so that Théoden was almost unable to resist staring.

"Greetings Your Highness. I am Lady Gladys Bolinsky. A professor specializing in etiquette."

An elderly lady in her mid-years. She had a proud expression on her face while her aura was freezing. Gladys's shoulder-length mystic turquoise hair matched her sky-blue eyes. Her introduction was quite short but it gave everything he needed to know. She had confidence in her profession as her actions and mannerisms screamed grace and poise.

"Yes," Théoden said as if not interested. His voice was passive, calm, and detached and he would almost seem unconcerned. "Nice to meet you all."

'Is he being mean or sarcastic?'

The thought crossed the professors' minds. They didn't want to seem rude so they bit down their complaints. There was only one powerhouse in the kingdom that dared bring all the professors together like such and receive no criticism.

It would normally be assumed a hoarding, but the Astalles Duchy was different. It was a highly desired place to work. The environment and the power they held in the kingdom were enviable. Despite all the Duchy's prestige, they never gathered many talents that aspired to work there. Being chosen was a blessing on its own so such petty insult would not lessen their desire to gain the fame of working in the Dutchy.

Mer watched with a chuckle about to escape her lips. Theoden's attitude had not changed at all. He was unaware of the statuses of the professors. He only knew the bare minimum of their duties. Neither their social rank nor their fame. This was by the orders of her master, Marrianne.

Théoden was to assess them personally and would choose how to treat them as he saw fit. Looking at the scene in front of her, of the conceited noble professors perplexed and unable to refute since Théoden did it out of habit. He had not been taught how to handle guests or professors. However, he treated them with more respect than they could hope for from a Dutch heir. The arrogant brats from other Dutchy families would simply pass them off. Their fame made no difference in the face of The Astalles Duchy. However, his humility and free atmosphere made it hard to judge his character.

The introductions were done thus Théoden simply bid them farewell after further brief discussions on his study level. They were stupefied to find he had never gotten such an education thus he needed every knowledge taught from the basics. The professors quickly got rid of their pride and looked at the bigger picture.

They would gain the backing of the Astalles Dutchy and gain the status of the heir's teacher which sooner than later would turn to the Duke's teachers. It was a simple sacrifice since no one would ever find out what he learned from them but the result. They willingly accepted and set up a learning plan with Théoden.

Théoden had to learn to write and thus the language of the kingdom was important. Though Théoden had a translator tool, it was impossible to formulate sentences, much less write in the kingdom's language. He needed this to quickly fulfill other of his duties. There were three main languages of the kingdom with each having a different alphabet and structure. They differed so much that it was hard to believe they were of the same kingdom.

Other minor languages came into the picture much later. They would be useful when having diplomatic negotiations, something didn't need to worry about in the present. The Languages had histories of themselves that were both diverse and similarly interesting. The language division came with the fact that the kingdom had united from different states thus the three main languages narrowed down to the majority speakers.

The second important lesson was the etiquette of nobles. He had never learned such a thing. If it was basic etiquette, he had grasped that. Like table manners and general speech habits. However, simple etiquette and noble etiquette were fundamentally different. This was learning the meaning of each action and each gesture. Their way to treat someone lower status than you and higher status than you. It also had to do with the speech forms with hidden meanings in words. How a kind word could be an insult and harshness could be kindness. This was the world of nobility, aristocracy, and royalty.

Théoden was third-ranked in the hierarchy status, the first being the royal family and the second being the other dukes. Thus he had to learn a lot more not to blemish the status of the Astalles. A status that Théoden had come to appreciate with all its hardships since it was the better of the good things in his new life.

The kingdom's history lesson was also important. This is where all the noble families had been explained and their roots Thus it always began with the current existing family members. The political and diplomatic stance of each family was important. There were too many details that Théoden could not be covered in the lessons, simply by attending them but doing more research after classes to learn and understand. The learning room had an extensive library thus Théoden would spend most of his daily hours in the room.

He learned politics, worldly cultures his memory did not grant him, the language in debt, and the social system. The history of the continent has been long as far as it is concerned.

There were several minor lessons like dancing and arts, a general sense of what was common and uncommon in the capital. Théoden days transformed from staring off all day to full-clock lessons and duties. By the end of the week, Théoden had a huge boost in his knowledge.

Accumulatively he gained 8 knowledge stats.

Mer was doing her report in the Duchess's office. She had written everything down and was briefing on key points.

"How is my son faring?"

Marrianne asked. She was working on other things on her ever-full desk. She looked busier compared to normal. Her hands signed papers while her eyes scanned the details.

Mer found it odd how Marrianne had grown accustomed to calling Théoden her son. Similarly how Théoden had gotten used to referring to Marrianne as his mother. They were a complicated pair, she was sure of it.

"He has adapted very quickly. The basic lessons have been grasped and he is quickly advancing to higher academic levels. Soon he will get to the same level as his peers. He seems dedicated to it, with great motivation."

Marrianne's pen finally stopped and she placed it down. She scanned Mer and she smiled. Mer flinched been this was the first time she had seen her master smile so relaxed without a mask.

"Is that so? I expected as much, but he surpasses my expectations. Do you suppose he can do without you now as well?"

"Yes, Master."

"Very well, send Mary to him."

At the end of the week, Mer determined that Théoden had come to some point he could manage himself. She quit being his maid which was changed to Mary.

A change that was too big for Théoden.