Chapter 645 - Taming the Fifth Year - Siege - 3

The dark-haired girl was the first to speak, her voice soft but confident. "Ren Patinder. Finally. I’ve heard so much about you."

She approached with measured steps, extending her hand. "I’m Cassia Ashenway. From a high nobility family in the western region of the territory."

Her hand was soft, warm. The grip firm but not aggressive. And when she smiled, there was something in how her lips curved that seemed designed to make boys stumble over their own words.

Ren simply nodded. "A pleasure."

The blonde moved next, her steps almost floating. "Seraphina Starweaver," she introduced herself, her voice clear as crystal bells. "Also high nobility from an ancient section of the family."

When she took Ren’s hand, her fingers barely grazed him, a soft contact that somehow seemed more intimate than Cassia’s firm grip.

"Hello," Ren responded, feeling a small tickle in his hand but nothing more.

The third, the redhead with pronounced curves, was last. "Jeannette Blackwood," she said, her smile wider than the other two’s. "Goldcrest territory. My family is also high nobility but originally from the southern outskirts. The past generations elevated us."

Her handshake was the most casual of the three, almost friendly. But the way she slightly tilted her head, making her curls fall over her shoulder, seemed... calculated.

Aldric cleared his throat, gaining everyone’s attention. "Ren, these young ladies are your... reward."

Ren blinked. "My what?"

"Your reward," Aldric repeated, his expression showing something between satisfaction and nervousness. "As I promised. They’re here to help with your... ’social development’."

"Social?" Ren looked between the three girls and Aldric, confusion clear on his face.

"It’s important for a noble of your rank," Aldric continued with words that sounded rehearsed, "to interact appropriately with other nobles who aren’t your peers or friends. Especially those older than you but who see you as superior. You need experience in that type of dynamic."

Ren frowned. Larissa had mentioned something about this. About how he needed to learn to interact with nobles of different ranks...

And he definitely lacked interaction especially with those below him but...

He looked at the three girls again. They were high rank as they’d said, right? Or maybe they’d act differently...?

Cassia Ashenway clearly wasn’t acting low rank. Seraphina Starweaver even less so. And Jeannette from Goldcrest territory... None of them.

"I don’t think they’re below me in rank," Ren pointed out.

"Oh, you jest... ahem, I mean, acting humble isn’t needed here, you can relax more. Obviously, your territory will be larger than any of their families’," Aldric responded quickly. "And your connections more powerful so almost everyone sees you as superior now, right? But you’re right that the difference isn’t dramatic yet. That’s why they’re perfect for that kind of ’practice’. Not as intimidating as royalty you already master, nor so distant as to be irrelevant and dirt your name to be around."

Besides the "dirt your name" weird stuff... that... actually made some sense.

Ren didn’t interact much with nobles who weren’t his close friends or authority figures. And almost never with people who saw him as superior in this way.

Maybe that was the source of those strange tickles he felt when the groups pursued him?

The discomfort of being treated as "superior" when he wasn’t used to it. Ren was deceiving himself to avoid accepting in his subconscious that he was just shy before compliments that weren’t from his parents...

The three girls watched Ren with attention. So they noticed his slight surface discomfort.

Cassia noted something in his body language, got a flash of understanding, and turned toward Seraphina with a significant look.

Seraphina had mana eyes, Ren realized when she activated them. Ren had enormous perception and although he’d temporarily lost his advanced ones from his fungus, at least he’d learned to create archaic ones himself thanks to his huge Perception level and broad mana control, without assistance from beast abilities.

The girl was studying his mana right now, trying to read his emotions, his intentions.

But Ren’s mana was too complex. Too many intermingled tones. Jade from his broken seed, strange and multi-elemental, darkness, all mixed in patterns that probably seemed too chaotic to external eyes.

Seraphina frowned slightly, clearly frustrated at not being able to read too clearly. But at least she understood superficially that Ren felt "uncomfortable" and subtly signaled the others.

The interpretation was a bit exaggerated. They thought Ren (The one in Aldric delusions they heard of before this meeting) had higher ’beauty standards’ or maybe had little interest and had more ’experience’ than they’d thought.

Still, they didn’t give up. They couldn’t... They had clear orders.

Jeannette intervened first, gently, trying to save the situation with a more casual and friendly tone. "We understand this must be... an unusual way of doing it for you, Ren. We can take it slow."

"Yes," Cassia added, her tone becoming friendlier following the lead, less formal. "It doesn’t have to be all stoic and noble like. Just... like a friendship. Getting to know each other freely."

"Friendship," Ren repeated, and something in that word made the tension in his shoulders ease slightly. Learning to form friendship bonds in noble interactions sounded difficult but strangely interesting...

"Exactly," Jeannette smiled, this time seemed more genuine. "Just three noble girls who can help you better understand how to interact in social situations. No pressure."

Aldric watched the exchange with satisfaction when he noticed Ren was no longer refusing. "So, do you accept? Will you spend time with them? As part of your ’social experimentation’."

Ren considered. Larissa had mentioned he needed more experience interacting with nobles outside his close circle. And these girls seemed reasonable. Though he found it odd there were no boys in the group but...

Just... friendship.

"Okay," he said finally. "I suppose it doesn’t hurt if it’s practice ’without formal commitments’."

The three girls exchanged quick glances. Cassia nodded slightly to the other two.

"Perfect," Jeannette said with a smile that reached her green eyes. "Then maybe we could start with something simple. Tea? Casual conversation?"

"We can talk about your interests," Seraphina added, her voice soft. "Beast cultivation, I assume. I’m sure we all have Silver rank questions you could answer."

Ren relaxed a bit more. Talking about beasts and helping with "mid rank" cultivation was safe territory. Comfortable for him.

"Okay, that sounds easy."

Aldric practically glowed with satisfaction. "Excellent. Then I’ll leave you four to get to know each other better. Ren, remember this is a reward. You don’t need to worry, this time I don’t say it lightly." He scratched his head. "You can ’learn’ at your own pace."

The way he said "learn" made something tickle in Ren’s back again. But before he could analyze it, Jeannette was already guiding him toward the chairs with a friendly gesture.

The three girls, for their part, shared a silent understanding.

Cassia had noted Ren’s discomfort with certain approaches. Seraphina couldn’t read his mana clearly but had seen how he relaxed with the word "friendship". Jeannette had caught that approaching subtly, as ’friends’, was the correct ’kink’.

None of them were there completely by their own choice. But they had clear instructions: approach Ren Patinder. Seduce him if possible. At least gain his favor and keep him ’entertained’ as much as possible.

But they also weren’t completely against it. Ren was objectively a good catch. Powerful, wealthy, and if they managed to interest him...

Well, there were much worse fates for "political chips" like them than marrying a genius who had just demonstrated he could repair artifacts with his pure mana.

Aldric watched the scene with growing hope. The boy had accepted.

But Aldric didn’t understand in his delusions that Ren had interpreted "experience" as just "social experience" instead of... well, what Aldric and Baelthon had really planned.

But the misunderstanding played in his favor for now. Ren thought this was about noble education. The girls understood their true purpose. And while Ren seemed distracted, occupied, thinking about something beyond exams and power...

There was a possibility he would fail. That he’d become vulnerable.

And that was all the hope Aldric needed.

Inside the classroom, Ren sat with three of the most beautiful and best-trained girls that opportunistic noble families could offer.

And he, in his innocence, thought this was just about learning appropriate social interaction.