Spring Hunt.
Nominally, it was a hunting trip. In reality, it merely used the banner of a group hunt to conduct other business.
There were three main types of people involved.
The first were commoner warriors and mages who had performed relatively well in the Spring Martial Tournament.
They had declined invitations to join the military and enter its ranks, preferring to serve under great nobles in positions that were more leisurely and secure, yet paid better.
For instance, as captains of a noble's private guard or private tutors for a family.
Once they advanced to high-rank warriors or high-rank mages, they might even become retainers of those great nobles, or perhaps personal guards.
That was far easier—and far safer—than entering the military and clawing their way up step by step through military achievements.
The second type was naturally those sent by the great families to approach and assess the people in the first group.
These were generally the young masters and young ladies of noble families.
At their age, it was precisely time for them to begin building their own power bases.
They could make use of the old hands left behind by their fathers, but in the future, those people would never become the ones these younger generations trusted most.
Only those they personally selected and gradually nurtured would slowly become their confidants.
Thus, for those first two groups, the Spring Hunt was not about hunting, but about job-seeking and recruitment.
It was as though a massive temporary talent market had been set up.
Both sides got what they needed, making everyone happy.
Among them, nobles like Wodesen, who were themselves participants in the Spring Martial Tournament, had already found the commoner talents they favored during the tournament.
His attendance at the Spring Hunt this time was purely