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Starting with Aramen, Rupert was practically drowning in invitations pouring in from all over the continent.

‘We want to watch the animation too!’

Only the countries Rupert visited had their animation exports approved, leaving even the hardliners in a tough spot.

“What on earth is it about animation that people are complaining so much?”

“I think we misjudged the situation. This is already an unstoppable trend, and trying to control it just backfired.”

“Should we open the gates now?”

“It’s too late for that. Countries are lining up to invite him.”

Not just from the Empire, but no figure from the continent had ever been desired by all the countries like this.

The only one who came close was Yustaf, who, being the most renowned magician of the past, had visited only a handful of countries at the fervent requests of other wizards.

Unlike Yustaf, however, Rupert was receiving enthusiastic invitations from all social classes.

The thirst for new culture was high.

‘Plays are nice, but the ticket prices are steep, and they only ever do the same old stuff…’

‘A good orchestra can only be seen by the nobles; it’s miles away from us.’

‘The only entertainment left is listening to wandering bards in taverns.’

The culture of this world had primarily developed for the nobility, making it tough for commoners to enjoy it.

Even if conditions were set for them to see it, enjoying it was another matter altogether.

‘I can’t read, so I can’t even enjoy a book, and they’re so expensive!’

With the minimal basic literacy required to enjoy culture being rare, having the opportunity to see anything ended up being useless.

So, for folks who typically only listened to wandering bards, Rupert’s books were nothing short of shocking.

‘This is good even if you can’t read?’

‘With someone reading to me, I’ve accidentally learned some letters!’

‘I heard you can watch animation without knowing how to read at all!’

The thirst for something new was a fundamental instinct shared by all humans, regardless of status.

And now, the continent’s people were earnestly awaiting Rupert’s works, which had opened the floodgates for that desire.

The one responsible for such a situation was…

***

“Ugh….”

The morning sunlight streaming through the window was warmly illuminating Rupert’s body despite the winter chill.

Rupert was still engulfed in a state of groggy consciousness, savoring the soft feel of the blanket.

After receiving the goddess’s blessing, he had felt no fatigue despite his busy schedule, but even with that blessing, waking up immediately in the morning was still not an easy task.

“I have work to do again today.”

Indulging in laziness for a moment, Rupert eventually kicked off the covers and got out of bed.

“Have you risen, Young Master?”

A maid, who had been waiting at Rupert’s door, handed him a glass of slightly warm water.

“Thanks, how about Father and Aida?”

“Both are in the dining room.”

“Aida?”

Rupert was slightly surprised at the maid’s reply.

He had planned to wake Aida, who was usually lost in dreamland, but it was rare for her to already be awake.

“Oh, that girl must be all excited about going out again today.”

“It seems the young lady is quite thrilled as it’s her first time seeing the sea.”

Rupert quickly realized the reason Aida was up so early.

Today was the first trial run of Ismael’s Merry-Go-Round, and since it was a trial, only close people were invited, including Sena and Aida.

Of course, if Rupert had had the time, he would have gone along, but these days, managing two bodies was already overwhelming, so he regrettably couldn’t join.

“Have you woken up?”

“Yes, did Father sleep well?”

“No.”

Upon arriving at the dining room, he found Marquis Bradley Somerset sitting at the table with a sulky look while Aida was banging her fork and knife against the table.

“Aida, I told you not to bang the table like that!”

“Who cares!”

“Oh dear, you little troublemaker.”

Ignoring Rupert’s scolding, Aida continued banging on the table, looking like she was having the time of her life.

Rupert gave Aida’s head a gentle pat and sat down to prepare for breakfast.

“Rupert, my son, did you not even bother to ask why your father had a rough night?”

“Well, shall we eat?”

Rupert cheerfully ignored the marquis’s words, casually surveying the food on the table.

A fragrant soup was beautifully golden and smelled incredible.

“Today’s soup has an especially nice aroma!”

“Yes, Young Master. We happened to get some good meat this time, so I decided to make it as consommé.”

The head chef was pouring his heart into preparing luxurious meals for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, as if to make up for the family’s past poverty.

With his previously excellent skills on display, Rupert was truly enjoying mealtime.

“Indeed, very clean.”

“Thank you, Young Master.”

As Rupert took a sip of the soup and couldn’t help but exclaim in admiration, the chef wore a satisfied smile.

‘Seems like yesterday when I was munching on hard bread.’

Rupert was once again struck by how much had changed.

When Rupert first possessed this body, a breakfast at the Somerset family consisted solely of rock-hard bread and soup.

Back then, he was worried about when they would repay the debts, but now he was more concerned about how to spend the accumulating wealth rather than worrying about debt.

“Rupert! No matter how I think about it, this isn’t a human life!”

“Then shall we swap roles?”

“That’s….”

Even the once poverty-stricken Marquis Bradley, who was now lamenting about being overwhelmed with work, bore little resemblance to his former self.

He was still as naive and trusting as ever, which still worried Rupert; however, Bradley was surprisingly doing well in the role of family head.

The commoners were still fond of him, far more than Rupert, and there were no real issues because of it. Instead, the commoners’ affection for the marquis was growing day by day.

‘Our lord is truly a gift bestowed by the goddess.’

‘Yeah! I’ve not seen him raise taxes or punish us without reason for the past 30 years.’

‘Even after becoming marquis, he still visits the village to check on our hardships!’

Joking aside, Marquis Bradley was so popular that people would gladly lay down their lives for him if he asked, making it nearly impossible for any problems to arise.

Moreover, his ability to maintain harmonious relationships with the surrounding nobles was largely thanks to him.

Initially, there were those hoping to swindle him, remembering how the previous marquis was.

‘Who do you think you’re dealing with now?’

The marquis was still kind and merciful, but that was only towards his own people.

While he hadn’t sought personal revenge for past wrongs, the marquis remembered everything clearly and wouldn’t fall for traps so easily anymore.

Rather, he handled disputes and negotiations in a way that was beneficial for Somerset more than anyone else.

After all, the marquis was sitting on years of experience in the noble world, making it invaluable knowledge Rupert couldn’t replicate.

“All you boys can think about is…”

Now, the marquis was desperately wanting to hand over the position of family head to Rupert, lamenting over the workload.

‘Just hang in there for another ten years.’

Rupert, on the other hand, felt he didn’t have the luxury to take on the responsibilities of the family head as he needed to build his own achievements to inherit the title of honorary duke in ten years.

“Will our daughter be the family head?”

“No way!”

After realizing that his complaints fell on deaf ears for Rupert, the marquis turned his attention to Aida, who was busy chewing on a piece of meat.

But she immediately rejected the idea.

Of course, he didn’t plan on burdening his cute youngest daughter with such a difficult and troublesome position, but her adamant refusal struck the marquis slightly.

“So, what does Aida want to do in the future?”

“Aida will be a princess!”

“A princess?”

Curious about what Aida wanted for her future, Rupert interrupted the flowing conversation between the marquis and Aida, only to get a gleeful response.

“I’ll be Cinderella, Snow White, and the Little Mermaid! And I also have to be Pinocchio…”

Aida was naming every fairy tale character from the storybooks she had read so far.

Watching her, Rupert couldn’t help but burst into laughter.

‘Being an honorary duke seems easy.’

If he was to fulfill his only sister’s dream, he’d have to build an entire kingdom, making his current duties feel like mere homework!

***

“Absolutely no running away on Rach, okay?”

“Not gonna!”

“On the ship, you’ll obediently listen to Ismael?”

“Will do!”

“Have fun and come back!”

“Will come back!”

As Rupert finished his instructions, Aida jumped up onto his shoulders, riding like a little pony.

After finally managing to detach Aida’s little hands from his hair, Rupert handed her over to Oun, who was waiting nearby.

“Oun, please take good care of Aida.”

“I’ll do my best to protect her.”

Rupert chuckled at Oun’s response.

Originally, he should say he’d escort her, but now it had become a task of protection.

“Let’s go catch the Little Mermaid!”

“You don’t catch mermaids, ma’am. Plus, mermaids are not from here; they live in the sea.”

“That’s not true! I can see them! Oun is silly!”

“How about betting on whether you see one or not? If you don’t, you spend a week at home studying quietly.”

“Deal!”

As they hopped off the carriage and approached the mage tower’s teleportation circle, Rupert climbed aboard the one heading to the academy.