Detlinde/Story

Detlinde first meets Rozemyne and Wilfried at their first year fellowship gathering at the Royal Academy, where the archduke candidates of different duchies formally greet one another. She greets her cousin Wilfried warmly, but ignores Rozemyne and shows contempt for her.

They later meet again at dedication whirl practice, when Detlinde invites Wilfried to a “cousins tea party.” Reluctant to let him face such a risky social situation alone, Rozemyne points out that she’s also Detlinde’s cousin by adoption and tries to argue her way into being invited as well. However, Detlinde rejects her and plainly says that she does not consider her a cousin.

When Rudiger, Detlinde and Wilfried’s cousin from Frenbeltag, asks to join, Detlinde agrees after some hesitation. However, her vindictive smile suggests that she only agrees to spite Rozemyne.

At the cousins’ tea party, Detlinde grills Wilfried about how the Ehrenfest students raised their grades so drastically in such a short time, why Lamprecht's marriage was denied and whether Wilfried is already engaged. While Wilfried later describes it as an amicable meeting, Rozemyne suspects that Detlinde’s veiled insults might have gone over his head.

At Ehrenfest’s joint tea party for all other duchies, Detlinde attempts to damage Rozemyne’s reputation by exposing her background in the temple and revealing that she was absent from the Royal Academy because of the Dedication Ritual. However, Wilfried and Rudiger chime in to support Rozemyne. They explain that both Ehrenfest and Frenbeltag face such a serious mana shortage that archduke candidates are needed to conduct such tasks, and the guests feel sympathetic for their unfortunate situation.

Later at the same party, Rozemyne hands out small samples of rinsham to Eglantine and her friends. Detlinde asks for a jar to use herself. When Eglantine chides her for her making demands after being blatantly rude moments before, Detlinde insists again on the basis that Rozemyne is her cousin. Rozemyne reminds Detlinde that she previously told to her face that they were not cousins.

However, Justus signals to Rozemyne that she should give Detlinde a jar anyway, and she realizes that it will benefit Ehrenfest to reinforce its familial relationship with Ahrensbach in such a public setting. She gives Detlinde the rinsham, saying she values their relationship as cousins.

In Georgine and Gieselfried's side story, it is revealed that they want to arrange a marriage between Detlinde and Wilfried because Letizia, Detlinde's niece, has already been chosen as the next Aub. To avoid civil war in the duchy, they want Detlinde to marry a husband who lacks the ambition to push her to fight for the title of Aub herself. Wilfried, whose reputation was tarnished after entering the Ivory Tower, and who carries Ahrensbach blood, suits their plans perfectly. Unfortunately, Wilfried has already received the king's approval for his engagement with Rozemyne.

At the Archduke Conference following Detlindes fifth year at the academy the king orders the marriage of Detlinde and Ferdinand of Ehrenfest. Due to exceptional circumstances the usual preparation time will be cut short and the pair is to marry right after Detlindes coming-of-age and graduation next year.

This comes as a bad surprise for Detlinde. Over the last year she had become romantically involved with a young sovereign knight who had been sent to Ahrensbach to investigate the Ternisbefallen attack on the academy and the subsequent rebellion. With her betrothal ordered by the king himself, she has no choice but to break off her relationship with him and prepare for her upcoming marriage.

Come summer, Detlinde and her mother visit Ehrenfest, officially to allow the two betrothed to grow closer. Once in Ehrenfest Detlinde uses the opportunity to order a hair pin for her graduation. Despite her wishing to spend more time there, the visit is cut short when an emergency message from home arrives and Georgine decides they need to return immediately.

Due to barely even knowing her father she has essentially no feelings toward her fathers collapse. Since she had fun in Ehrenfest she only thinks that he should have collapsed at a less inconvenient time.

The entire Ahrensbach retinue leaves the city of Ehrenfest by coach, though after riding for one day and resting at an inn Georgine decides to hurry ahead with a smaller group on highbeast and leaves the majority of her retainers with the slow going coaches. They travel at a speed that soon exceeds Detlindes stamina, leaving her feeling sick and unable to continue. She tries to show no weakness and insists that she can continue, but her mother says they will take a break in Gerlach to allow Detlinde to recover. This catches Detlinde completely off guard, since in the past her mother always insisted on her working and studying no matter how ill she was.

Georgine exchanges ordonnanzes with Giebe Gerlach in which he informs her that he already has other guests and thus is unable to accomodate even the small party that moved via highbeast. He claims to only be able to accomodate Georgine, Detlinde and one guard knight and attendant for each of them. Despite the present knights strongly argueing against traveling with so little protection, Georgine accepts this offer.

< Detlinde