Isekai Adventure in the Dimensional Cube

Reiger, of course, knew why Sena was gloating over the misfortune.

For to the eyes of the general public, the status of magicians is undoubtedly higher than that of swordsmen.

This is not just because there are few people qualified to be magicians, and they are rare, but also because of national circumstances.

For the sake of war, for the sake of military strength, the nation needs tactical and strategic level magicians as military weapons, and therefore, in every country, the nurturing and emphasis on magicians far exceeds that of swordsmen.

This can be seen from the fact that institutions like the National Magic Academy exist in the world.

In all major countries, there are academies like the National Magic Academy that specialize in training magicians, but there isn't a single one dedicated to training swordsmen in this world.

Therefore, in the eyes of the world, magicians are noble, a symbol of status, and simply being able to become a tactical or strategic level magician can easily earn one a noble title, becoming a nobleman. It is conceivable how many people dream of becoming magicians due to such national policies.

Even magicians with insufficient natural magic power and talent, unable to learn and use tactical or strategic level magic, by relying on combat level magic alone, can still achieve much.

For example, the slave contract mentioned earlier can only be cast by a magician; slave traders who want to do business in this area must, inevitably, spend a lot of money to hire a magician.

The same applies to other areas, whether it's inscribing spells into magic crystals to create various magical tools or collaborating with blacksmiths and forging masters to create magical weapons; these tasks all require magicians.

There's also the work of concocting magical potions with peculiar effects, designing magical defense systems, and special construction projects, all of which can't be done without magicians.

Thanks to this, magicians are sought-after talents by all parties, even if they only know combat-level magic. Add to that magicians who are proficient in combat-level magic can also guarantee strong fighting power, and no matter where they go, magicians are respected and adored by people.

In contrast, swordsmen, by cultivating sword skills, might become stronger than most magicians, but besides fighting and killing, they truly have little else they can do.

Therefore, magicians switching to swordsmanship, becoming swordsmen, is seen by most people as a step down in status, from a noble elite to an ordinary commoner.

Unless it's truly unavoidable, a change of circumstances occurs, and they are forced to, otherwise, no magician would willingly change their profession to swordsman.

If Reiger were to switch to sword techniques, it would be basically equivalent to cutting off the path to becoming a noble, to becoming a rare talent.

Unless one makes a great contribution or becomes a Sword Saint, an unmatched one-on-one fighter, it is very difficult for a swordsman to gain attention and become a nobleman.

If Reiger had been of noble birth, he might still inherit the family business and remain a nobleman.

But he is a commoner, and what's more, a commoner from the countryside. After switching to the way of the sword, it would be absolutely impossible for him to be pursued and adored as before.

For this reason, Sena felt schadenfreude.

But—

"It's still better than continuing to be a waste, right?" Reiger's expression remained calm as he glanced at Sena, then said, "Besides, with my magic power, after I switch to sword techniques, my combat power should increase rather than decrease. At least, taking down a few student-level magicians definitely won't be difficult."

Sena's face immediately stiffened.

The others, too, were taken aback by Reiger's words and fell silent.

"Umm..."

Seeing the turn of events was not good, Aquil quickly spoke up, laughing it off, ready to smooth things over.

But before he could, Reiger had already shifted the topic.

"Since everyone wants to see different things, why don't we split up here?" Reiger suggested, "How about we meet back here in an hour?"

As he spoke, Reiger glanced over at everyone.

"Okay, okay."

"Let's do that then."

"I have no objections."

"Me neither."

With such a sweep from Reiger, the several noble youths unconsciously responded.

"..."

Now, it was Aquil's turn for his face to tighten slightly.

"Then let's just do that."

Reiger said no more and left after speaking his piece.

Ai En and Ian followed suit, their manner behind Reiger making them look quite attractive, which earned many envious looks from passersby who noticed their outstanding appearances.

It wasn't long before Kaliya and Shafni also left.

Only Aquil and the others were left standing there, completely at a loss for a moment.

After a while, Sena was the first to grow angry.

"Damn it," Sena ground his teeth, "That country bumpkin actually dared to give us orders. Who does he think he is?"

Aquil didn't say a word, though his expression wasn't very pleasant either.

The mixed group of tall, short, fat, and thin didn't dare to make a peep, standing there meekly.

After all, they had just unconsciously given Reiger their obedient responses.

If Aquil decided to pursue the matter, it wouldn't bode well for them.

Fortunately, though Aquil's expression was not good, he did not vent his anger on them.

Or rather, more than anger, Aquil was feeling perplexed.

"Why does it feel like he's somehow changed?" Aquil wondered aloud. "Was he always the type to boss others around?"

Aquil felt that there was an unfamiliar air about Reiger now, a significant change.

Sena, on the other hand, didn't see anything noteworthy.

"What's so strange about it?" Sena snorted coldly and said, "The guy has climbed up by attaching himself to the Franser family. Perhaps he feels he's gotten ahead and looks down on us nobles of lower titles, and that's why he's become so arrogant, right?"

When he heard "Franser family," Aquil's eyes flickered again.

And Sena's words were clearly not yet finished.

"I mean, Aquil, why do we even bother to meet up with that guy?" Sena said indignantly: "That guy can't even become a Magician anymore, he's from a different world than us. The Academy is even discussing whether to cancel his enrollment and expel him. You said before that he was worthless and that we should ignore him from now on, so why all of a sudden are we inviting him out again?"

"What do you know?" Aquil said expressionlessly. "He himself may be worthless, but he has fortuitously formed a connection with the Franser family. Isn't it a shame not to make use of that relationship?"

"That's true." Sena licked the corner of his mouth and said, "If we could get to know that person from the Franser family through that country bumpkin, we would really be impressive."

At this, Aquil also smiled.

However, it was a cold smile.

"If that person from the Franser family could say a word for me, Father surely wouldn't consider that waste of my older brother anymore, right?"

Yes, that was Aquil's true purpose.

Soon, the Rein Family was going to establish a successor.

Who would become the next Earl of Rein and the Family Head would soon be known throughout the entire royal capital of Yeruf.

But this was where the problem lay.

In this world, titles and the position of Family Head could indeed be inherited by offspring, but generally, it was the eldest son who took over the position of the heir.

Of course, this wasn't absolute. If the eldest son was utterly incompetent, some nobles with sense would regard a capable child as the heir.

However, such people were in the minority.

Most nobles, when selecting an heir, still tended to lean towards the eldest son.

The current Family Head of the Rein family, Aquil's father, was one of those people.

Aquil was certain that his father preferred his older brother over himself as the successor.

This made Aquil extremely discontent.

In terms of ability, he believed he was not inferior to his older brother, and in fact, far surpassed him.

In terms of connections, although he seemed to be messing around outside, he had actually established a considerable foundation.

In contrast, his elder brother, with unremarkable Magic Power and without the ability to become a Magician, had only mediocre swordsmanship, incapable of even defeating a guard, mediocre in every aspect, was simply incomparable to himself.

Yet his father believed that the eldest son should be the heir. Why?

Just because that person was born one or two years before him?

Aquil couldn't accept it!

"As long as I can establish a relationship with that person from the Franser family, Father will have to choose me, even if he's reluctant, right?"

After all, that person is currently a favored individual in the kingdom, one of only eight Strategic Level Magicians on the continent, possessing the power to decide the future of a nation.

Forming a connection with such an existence would be a stroke of great fortune for the Rein family, akin to their ancestors' graves sprouting green smoke.

For the sake of the entire family, as the Family Head, Father would surely choose me as the heir, doing everything possible to maintain this relationship.

"Let's go, attend to your own tasks," Aquil said to the others: "When the opportunity arises, we will have Reiger introduce us to that person in front of them."

"Yes," Sena and the others immediately nodded in agreement.

...

On the other hand, Reiger had long since pushed the existence of Aquil and his group to the back of his mind.

Following the instructions on a nameplate, he arrived at a store specializing in the sale of swordsmanship books.

"Welcome."

The shopkeeper immediately came forward to greet Reiger with a bow.

"May I help you select some sword skills?"

The shopkeeper took a surprisingly impressed glance at Ai En and Ian, then addressed Reiger, who was clearly the leader.

"Yes," Reiger looked around and said, "What kind of sword skills do you have here?"

"We have a wide variety of sword skills, totalling one thousand one hundred and thirty-seven, of which eight hundred and forty are of the lower grade, and two hundred ninety-seven are of the higher grade," the shopkeeper replied respectfully. "Most of these sword skills have been collected from the different territories of the Kingdom of Ginas, with a few coming from other countries. Which kind would you like?"

"It doesn't matter which country they come from," Reiger turned to the shopkeeper and said, "However, I am interested in seeing the special grade sword skills. Don't you have any special grade sword skills here?"

At these words, the shopkeeper was at first taken aback, then let out a wry smile.

"My dear sir, please don't joke with me," the shopkeeper said with a wry smile. "Special grade sword skills are usually found in auctions, how could they appear in a store like ours?"

Although Reiger could understand this, he still couldn't help feeling a bit disappointed.