Meredy somehow appeared beside Sorano and explained with a serious tone.
"Two to one. Then the plan is decided."
Without giving Lucy any chance to object, Sorano immediately took the request sheet and handed it over to Laki for registration.
Once Laki recorded the request along with the three names, it was already too late for Lucy to refuse.
After returning the request sheet, Laki looked at the utterly defeated Lucy and thought for a moment before quietly offering a reminder.
"This request has been sitting in the guild for several days already. Because no one took it, the client is considering increasing the reward."
"So Lucy, when you meet the client, you might get a surprise."
"An increase? How much? Could it be 400,000?"
At the mention of more money, Lucy instantly abandoned all shame, leaning forward eagerly.
"I don't know. It depends on the client's decision."
"In that case, why are we still hesitating? Let's go immediately before someone else takes it!"
Seeing Lucy completely change from earlier and rush to leave, Sorano and Meredy exchanged glances and smiled.
After saying goodbye to Laki, the three of them headed to the Magnolia train station.
After more than half an hour of buying tickets and waiting, they finally boarded the train bound for Hilos City.
On the train, Lucy began asking the two seniors about Duke Ebar.
"Speaking of which, I know most of the famous nobles in the kingdom, but I've never heard of this Duke Ebar before."
Neither Meredy nor Lucy had any prior knowledge of this person, so they both turned their attention to Sorano.
"Hmph. Understanding the major forces and important figures of the kingdom is basic training for a mage."
"Lucy is a newcomer, so it's understandable, but Meredy, you should know better. You really haven't been studying enough."
Under Sorano's lecture, both girls lowered their heads in embarrassment.
Lucy, sitting opposite, also averted her gaze awkwardly, deciding she would study this properly after returning.
After establishing her senior authority, Sorano finally explained Ebar's situation.
"The Ebar family was once a founding noble house of Fiore. Their ancestors contributed greatly to the founding of the kingdom and were granted the title of duke and territorial lands by the royal family."
"However, several generations ago, they became involved in a royal succession dispute. They backed the losing faction and were stripped of all their lands."
"But the king at the time showed mercy to their status as founding heroes and did not remove their noble title."
"By this generation, the Ebar family only retains the title of duke and noble privileges, living off remaining ancestral assets."
"Even so, they are still far wealthier than ordinary people."
After hearing Sorano's explanation, Lucy formed a rough image of Duke Ebar.
In summary, a once-glorious noble family fallen into decline, now clinging to its title and aristocratic dignity while indulging in excess.
Such nobles were not uncommon in the kingdom. Lucy had seen many so-called counts and dukes from fallen houses visit her father's home to maintain connections.
Some even tried to introduce their sons to Lucy in hopes of arranging marriages.
All of them were eventually dismissed by her father with a small sum of money.
She still remembered Jude's evaluation of them.
"Disgusting. A bunch of landless beggars still pretending to be nobles, coming to the Heartfilia house to beg."
Now that she understood this, Lucy felt much more at ease about the upcoming mission.
After all, infiltrating a real powerful duke's mansion and infiltrating a hollow noble living off prestige were two completely different levels of difficulty and danger.
"Heh. I already know how to deal with him. Just watch me."
Lucy gave a confident thumbs-up, looking fully prepared.
Sorano suppressed a laugh internally but only nodded coldly on the surface.
"Then I'll leave it to you. Let's see how well you adapt."
"Do your best, Lucy. If you perform well, next time Sorano and I might bring you along for more challenging missions."
Under the encouragement, or rather manipulation, of the two seniors, Lucy quickly became fired up and eager to take on the mission.
-------------------------
Patreon Advance Chapters: patreon .com / ElvenKing20