Help! I'm just an extra yet the Heroines and Villainesses want me!-Chapter 84: Political Pieces

The second day of training was somehow worse than the first.

Duchess Arabella had him working on five-element simultaneous control before breakfast, and William’s head felt like it was splitting apart by the time she finally called a halt.

"Better," she said while he lay on the ground trying to remember how breathing worked. "You held all five for almost thirty seconds. At the gathering tonight, if anyone challenges you to demonstrate your abilities, you can show them something that will make them reconsider their assumptions about House Cross’s youngest son."

"Joy," William muttered.

Seraphine appeared with water, having watched the entire brutal session from her usual bench. "That looked really hard. Are you okay?"

"I’m fine." William sat up and drank the water gratefully.

"You don’t look fine. You look like you’re about to pass out."

"That’s just my face now." 𝒻𝓇𝑒𝘦𝘸𝑒𝒷𝓃ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝒸ℴ𝘮

His mother ignored their exchange. "Go clean up and dress appropriately. The gathering starts in four hours, and you need to look presentable. I’ve had formal attire prepared in your room."

William dragged himself back to his chambers and found servants had indeed laid out clothes that were significantly more elaborate than anything he’d worn so far. Deep blue coat with silver embroidery in House Cross patterns, tailored pants, a formal shirt, and various accessories he didn’t know the purpose of.

He bathed, dressed with help from a servant who appeared specifically to ensure he didn’t mess up the complicated formal wear, and stared at himself in the mirror.

He looked like a proper noble. Nothing like the academy student who’d arrived a few days ago.

The gathering was being held in the manor’s grand ballroom, a massive space William had never actually entered before. When he walked in two hours early as his mother had instructed, servants were still setting up tables, arranging flowers, and preparing refreshments.

Duchess Arabella was overseeing everything with precision, directing servants with quiet commands that had them moving efficiently.

"Good, you’re presentable," she said when she saw William. "Now, let me brief you on who will be attending and what you need to know about them."

What followed was an intensive crash course in noble family politics. She ran through the major houses sending representatives, their current political positions, what alliances they were seeking, what conflicts existed between them, and what topics to avoid in conversation.

"House Aldric is trying to arrange marriages for three daughters. They’ll likely attempt to introduce you to all of them. Be polite but non-committal."

"House Vexmore is feuding with House Aldric over trade routes. Don’t mention trade at all if they’re both in the conversation."

"Young Lord Thorne recently failed his academy entrance exam for the third time. Don’t bring up the academy unless he does first."

"Lady Ashford from House Ashford will be here — yes, Mira’s mother. She’ll definitely want to discuss your relationship with her daughter. Be diplomatic."

William’s head was spinning by the time she finished, and guests hadn’t even started arriving yet.

"Remember," his mother said as the first carriages began pulling up outside. "You’re representing House Cross tonight. Your father specifically requested you do this to prove you can handle family responsibilities. Don’t give him ammunition to use against you."

The next three hours were a blur of introductions, careful conversations, and navigating social dynamics he barely understood.

Young nobles from various houses clustered in groups, sizing each other up while their parents discussed politics and business in another part of the ballroom. William found himself pulled into conversation after conversation, each one a careful dance of saying enough to be polite without revealing anything that could be used against him.

Lady Ashford did indeed corner him at one point, asking pointed questions about Mira that William deflected as diplomatically as possible. Three daughters from House Aldric were introduced to him in succession, each clearly auditioning for the role of potential marriage candidate. Young Lord Thorne proved to be arrogant and dismissive until someone mentioned William’s Inter-Academy team placement, at which point he became coldly hostile.

"Fifth place," Thorne said loud enough for others to hear. "Barely adequate for someone from House Cross. I’m sure your brothers could have placed first if they’d bothered to attend that tournament."

"My brothers have more important military responsibilities," William replied evenly. "I’m fortunate the academy competition timing aligned with my training progress."

"Fortunate indeed. Some might say suspiciously so." Thorne’s smile didn’t reach his eyes. "After all, your previous academic record was... unremarkable. One might wonder what changed so suddenly."

William felt attention shifting toward them. Other young nobles were listening now, interested in the confrontation.

"Hard work and good instruction changed," William said. "Revolutionary concepts, I know."

A few people laughed at that. Thorne’s expression darkened.

"Perhaps you’d care to demonstrate this supposed improvement? A friendly sparring match, just to satisfy curiosity." Thorne’s tone made it clear there was nothing friendly about the suggestion.

William saw his mother watching from across the room, her expression neutral but her eyes sharp. This was a test within a test — how he handled this challenge would be reported back to his father.

"I’d be happy to," William said calmly. "Though perhaps after the formal gathering concludes? I’d hate to damage Lady Vexmore’s beautiful ballroom with combat techniques."

More laughter at that. Thorne looked frustrated at not getting an immediate confrontation.

"Tomorrow then. The Cross family training grounds. Let’s see if the youngest Cross son has any actual skill or just family connections." Thorne walked away before William could respond.

"Well handled," a voice said beside him.

William turned to find a girl around his age with dark red hair and amber eyes studying him with interest. She wore House Vexmore colors, with was a dress in deep purple and gold.

"I’m Elara Vexmore," she introduced herself. "That was entertaining. Thorne’s been insufferable all evening and you’re the first person who’s pushed back without being obviously hostile."

"I try to avoid unnecessary conflicts."

"Smart policy at these gatherings. Everyone’s looking for ammunition to use later." Elara glanced around the ballroom. "So, Inter-Academy team member. That’s actually impressive despite Thorne’s dismissiveness. What house are you in at the academy?"

"Ascendant."

"The misfit house. Interesting choice for a Cross family member." She tilted her head. "Or was it not a choice?"

"The sorting was based on cultivation assessment. I ended up where I fit."

"Diplomatic answer." Elara smiled. "You’re better at these social games than I expected. Most academy students are terrible at noble gathering politics and too used to being direct."

They talked for several more minutes before Elara was called away by her mother. William found himself approached by other young nobles throughout the evening, some genuinely friendly, others clearly assessing him for their own purposes.

By the time the gathering finally ended and the last guests departed, William was exhausted in a completely different way than combat training.

His mother found him in a quiet corner of the ballroom after everyone had left.

"You did well," she said. "Better than well, actually. Several parents commented on your composure and diplomatic responses. Lady Vexmore was particularly impressed."

"Thorne challenged me to a sparring match tomorrow."

"I heard. I also heard how you deflected it gracefully while still accepting." Duchess Arabella looked satisfied. "Your father will receive positive reports about tonight. You represented House Cross appropriately."

"Is that all this was? A performance for father’s benefit?"

"Everything is a performance, William. The sooner you understand that, the better." She moved toward the exit. "Get some rest. Tomorrow you have that sparring match with Thorne, and I want you to win decisively enough to make a statement but not so overwhelmingly that it creates enemies."

"Specific."

"Welcome to noble family politics. Every action is calculated." She paused at the door. "Oh, and your sister waited up for you in the library. She wanted to hear how the gathering went. Don’t stay up too late, we have training again in the morning."

William made his way to the library and found Seraphine curled up in a chair with a book, clearly fighting to stay awake.

"Hey," he said quietly.

She jumped slightly, then smiled when she saw him. "You’re back! How was it? Was it boring? Did anything interesting happen?"

William sat in the chair across from her and found himself actually wanting to tell her about the evening. Seraphina listened with genuine interest, asking questions and making commentary that was surprisingly insightful for a thirteen-year-old.

"So you have to fight this Thorne guy tomorrow?" she asked. "Are you going to win?"

"Probably."

"Just probably?"

"Definitely," William corrected. "But I have to win the right amount."

"That’s so weird. Why can’t you just win completely?"

"Because if I destroy him too badly, his family becomes an enemy. If I barely win, people think it was luck. I need to win clearly enough to prove competence but not so overwhelmingly that it looks like I was showing off."

Seraphine made a face. "Noble politics are stupid."

"Yeah, they really are."

They talked for another hour before Seraphine finally admitted she was too tired to stay awake longer. William walked her to her room, said goodnight, and returned to his own chambers.

Two more days here. The sparring match with Thorne tomorrow, one more day of training, then finally back to the academy.

Back to Kai and time loops and assassination attempts that at least made sense in their straightforward danger.

William fell asleep thinking about combat strategies and political calculations in equal measure.

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