When was the last time I actually stopped to have lunch? Hell, when was the last time I had lunch in general?
Gods, it feels like it’s been forever. I can’t even begin to remember the last time I’ve done something like this.
It’s not like lunch was a foreign concept in this world, and I definitely remember eating more meals as a kid, but at some point in my life, lunch became a rare treat rather than something a person partook in daily.
That said, it wasn’t like I passed up an opportunity to snack whenever possible. For example, while Tabitha and I were in the endless forest, we were always on the lookout for anything edible and would eat just as much as we picked, if not more so.
It made no sense to carry everything around with us unless it needed to be cooked, weighing us down, when eating the majority of what we picked was so much easier. And thanks to our levels boosting our constitutions, it wasn’t like our bodies lost that extra energy passively, as someone back on Earth might have.
No, the truth of the matter was, lunch was simply a distraction, a speedbump in the middle of the day, something meant to be evaded whenever possible. And it wasn’t like doing so was bad. People with levels only needed to eat at most twice a day, and only if they were being physically active.
If somebody like Tabitha or me, or gods forbid Pacore, did nothing but sit around all day, we could probably get away with eating once a day—Maybe even less—and it wouldn’t even be all that unhealthy for us.
Stopping to sit down for lunch was completely unnecessary… But I was technically still recovering, so, hey, why not?
Plus, Mom was here with Sandra and her family. Oh, and I could never forget about Tabitha. Even Pacore was being mostly quiet, at least by his standards, so it was easy to pretend he wasn’t here, meaning the only people missing were my father, brother, and Del.
General Pitz was also notably absent from this impromptu meeting, probably because she was tired of dealing with Pacore, which I completely understand.
It would’ve been amazing if the rest of my family and Master Del could’ve joined us, but the three of them were too busy leading the charge in finishing the last section of the wall. Besides, none of us planned on meeting up like this. Heck, I didn’t even think I was going to leave the house today until Mom made me, but I’m glad that she did.
The spread wasn’t too bad either.
Sandra’s mom had laid out a venerable feast by village standards, which meant she put out two platters of various fresh-cut fruits and vegetables, a sliced loaf of bread fresh out of Granny Gellar’s oven, and some perfectly roasted sausages. Nothing too crazy, mind you, but definitely not something anybody in Spotted Creek would usually indulge in.
Everything was deliciously simple. I especially enjoyed munching on fruits and vegetables without having to walk through a magical forest to get them, though I had to say the bread was the best part. We didn’t exactly have much time to bake any fresh bread in the Endless Forest. Meaning, over the last two months, we’ve only had the hard biscuits we brought with us as our rations, and even those ran out weeks ago.
I personally didn’t realize how much I missed fresh bread until I took my first bite.
Granny Gellar was an artist with simple pastries, having spent her entire life working with the same handful of ingredients, pushing them to their absolute peak. No one knew exactly what skills she had or what levels they were, but she made the best damned bread I’ve ever had, that was for sure. Not that I’ve had many chances to eat other people’s bread; still.
“That’s an interesting combination you have there,” Pacore notes curiously, breaking his short-lived silence, as he eyed the food in my hands as if it were something special. Sandra and Camden had already copied me, and Mom looked interested in trying it too, so I suppose I should’ve expected him to say something sooner or later.
Personally, I don’t know why Pacore looked so amazed. All I did was wrap one of the sausages in a slice of Granny Gellar’s amazing bread to make eating both a bit easier. It wasn’t like I invented some culinary masterpiece or anything.
I mean, come on, all it was was meat and bread. If I had some proper toppings and a few condiments on hand, I might be willing to call what I had a hot dog, but even that would be stretching it.
“Do you eat with your hands often?” Pacore continued to tease me while he cut up his own food with his fork. Just a fork.
Normally, I’d fire back some quick-witted response, possibly something about him being too old to eat solid food anymore, but in this instance, I was too busy watching Pacore’s hands to form a clever response.
The way his hand danced across his plate was mesmerizing. He wielded his utensil with the same eerie precision he did his weapon—with the same devastating results.
Whatever Pacore touched with his fork was severed in two as if cut by the sharpest knife. He cut his food like a surgeon with a scalpel, without leaving even a single scratch on his plate. Not once did he have to go over anything twice or press hard against a raw vegetable; everything split under the lightest tap.
Though I hated the man on principle, I had to admit it was remarkable to watch reluctantly.
Of course, Pacore noticed me staring. I wasn’t trying to be secretive, though I probably should have been. “Don’t worry,” he tells me, smirking behind his feather-laden beard, like a teacher showing off in front of a classroom of students. “In time, you’ll be as cool as me, of that, I have no doubt.”
“I could use my skills if I wanted to,” I grumble sourly under my breath as I take a bite out of my not-hot dog. Sure, I’d pulverize everything into paste if I did, but I could.
“Of that, I have no doubt. You might even be able to show us something more impressive than this little parlor trick.” Pacore doesn’t disagree with me, which somehow hits harder than I expected, throwing me off my game. Stupid old man and his stupid, seemingly genuine smile, leaving me feeling conflicted.
Why does everything have to feel like a backhanded compliment from him? No wonder Tabitha and his other students can’t understand him! Was he genuinely complimenting me, or was he messing with me? I couldn’t tell, which is incredibly frustrating.
Whatever, I’ll just ignore him the same way Mom does with me when I get too rowdy.
“So, how has your day been?” I turn and ask my pregnant friend/sister-in-law, doing my best not to even glance in Pacore’s direction. I could sense him watching my every move, and I could practically picture his smug, smiling face, but I ignored him all the same.
“Ugg, you have no idea,” Sandra responds by groaning wildly while simultaneously rubbing her protruding stomach affectionately, before glancing knowingly between Pacore and me, not so subtly signaling that she knew what I was doing. “I can’t wait to hold my baby in my arms, but I swear if they kick me in the bladder one more time, I think I’m going to scream.”
“Sounds rou—” I try to offer my condolences like a good friend/sister-in-law, but am interrupted by my mortal enemy.
“When are you due, my dear?” From the corner of my eye, I catch Pacore leaning forward slightly as if he were genuinely interested in Sandra’s pregnancy.
“Like it concerns you,” I scoff, as I feel my eyebrow begin to twitch.
“Aaliyah,” Mom lightly scolds me from across the table, but doesn’t say anything other than my name.
Of course, Pacore finds my sour expression funny and cackles boisterously. “For your information, it does. Especially considering her pregnancy will determine how long I must wait for my two favorite apprentices,” he informs the room while shooting me specifically a shit-eating grin.
Damn, I looked.
I want to argue back, but just like everybody else in the room, I was just as confused as the rest of them—Well, everyone other than Tabitha.
“Pardon me, Master Pacore,” Sandra’s mother took it upon herself to voice our concerns. “But what does my daughter’s pregnancy have to do with Tabitha and Aaliyah leaving?”
Instead of answering right away, Pacore takes a moment to study me while taking a rather large bite out of his food. He then glances at Tabitha and starts smirking knowingly.
“I see the two of you didn’t talk about everything while you were alone,” Pacore pointlessly needles me after swallowing his food before addressing the room. “My original plan was to leave as soon as the girls returned.”
“To tell the truth, I was ordered back a while ago once the peace agreement was officially signed, and it was no longer needed for me to be stationed here, but the gods apparently have it out for me,” Pacore jokes, but only he laughs. “I was hoping I was finally going to be allowed to return home soon, but apparently I’ll need to write another letter to His Majesty explaining my continued absence.”
“Then you intend to stay?” Headman Downs asks with a complicated expression, and it wasn’t hard to understand why. While hosting someone of Pacore’s status was considered an honor by most, and his men were helping finish the wall, it also required a lot of extra resources, not to mention the unspoken danger of what might happen if any of them were offended while staying here. However, I wasn’t 100% sure of that last part.
Including Tabitha, I’ve only met four people who could claim the title of high-level individuals. The first was Del, whom I’d grown up around and who was my master, with General Pitz, Pacore, and Tabitha making up the other three. And while I had my problems with Pacore, none were pompous assholes expecting the world to bend to their whims. I suppose I’ll meet more people of General Pitz’s caliber once I leave the village, but until then, I didn’t exactly have that big of a sample size to pull from.
“I apologize, but no.” Pacore’s answer pulls me out of my thoughts and captures the undivided attention of everybody in the room, including myself. “I know I said yesterday that I’d have my men help you finish your wall, but now that I know Aaliyah and Tabitha are safe, I think it’s time we leave.”
“Oh? Does that mean you won’t be staying for two more days?” Mom leans forward in her chair. “And you aren’t taking the girls with you?”
“Technically,” Pacore makes a so-so gesture with his hand. “I wanted to take them back with me the moment they walked into the village,” Pacore feigns a pained expression that doesn’t reach his eyes. “Sadly, I’m a big softy when it comes to my students. And last night, Tabitha asked me to allow them to stay until the baby was born. Practically begged me to.”
“I did not,” Tabitha corrects, from beside her teacher, with a straight face.
“There were tears and everything.” Pacore continues to exaggerate as if his apprentice hadn’t just contradicted him, before chuckling madly. “Regardless, I agreed to her passionate plea—”
“Not how it happened.”
“So, the two of them will be staying for a little bit longer. At least, I hope it’s only a little bit longer.” Once again, I watch Pacore glance at Sandra’s stomach. “I was told you only have a few weeks left?”
“That’s what our village’s healer says,” Camden answers for his daughter. “Though, technically, the baby can come any day now.”
“Then I don’t suppose you can speed things up, my dear?” Pacore laughs playfully, but I think we all can hear the slight twinge of disappointment in his voice.
“I don’t know what I can do, but I’ll try,” Sandra responds jokingly, not at all seriously.
“I suppose that will have to be enough.” Pacore sighs tiredly before reaching for his waterskin filled with paint-thinner, but I stop him before he can uncork it and gas all of us.
“Not with Sandra in the room. You drank enough in front of her yesterday,” I hiss.
“But I’m sad,” Pacore tries to force himself to look like a feeble old man. Joke's on him; it only makes him look constipated.
“Tough luck. Not around the baby.” He allows me to snatch the waterskin out of his hands.
“My hero,” Sandra swoons across from me, making me blush slightly.
“What kind of world do we live in where a man can’t drink his sorrows away?” Pacore wails like a child for a few seconds before shrugging as if what could he do. Then, as if he were a different person entirely, his eyes sharpen, and he starts projecting an air of superiority.
“I’ll tell my men later that we’ll be heading out the day after tomorrow. So, technically, we’ll be here for another two days, but I’m afraid my men won’t be able to help that much more with your wall during that time. A few of them can keep working while the rest pack things up, but that’s as much as I can offer you,” Pacore apologizes to Camden.
“Of course, Spotted Creek Village understands, Master Pacore.” Our headman lowers his head to an appropriate degree, and I can see a little bit of tension leave his shoulders, knowing Pacore and his men will be leaving soon.
“You’re very kind. Anyways, Tabitha will stay behind with Aaliyah until the baby is born,” Pacore explains to the room. “That way you’ll still have a little more time to spend with your family,” he tells us, earning him a bunch of grateful smiles from most of the people in the room. But not me.
Me, personally—I don’t know how to feel.
Obviously, I’m happy to have a few more days to spend with my family, but at the same time, this was it. Who knew how much more time I had with them? Babies arrived when they wanted to; I could have weeks to say goodbye to my family, or Sandra could go into labor tomorrow, and there was nothing I could do about it. Either way, the next few days will likely be the last I see of Spotted Creek Village for who knows how long, and it was hard to describe how that made me feel.
I didn’t want to leave my family, but on the other hand, it was hard to forget how exciting it was exploring the magic-dense region with Tabitha. What it felt like braving uncharted territory. Seeing sights that dazzled the imagination. The danger. The payoff at the end.
A part of me— a very, very, very small part of me, wanted to leave with Pacore. Now. To experience the unknown. To become strong enough to kill a dragon. And I hated that small part of me because it made me feel selfish inside.
“And what happens once my niece or nephew is born?” I find myself asking in the haze of conflicting emotions.
“That’s a good question,” Mom chimes in with a forced smile. “Are they to leave the moment my first grandchild is born? What then?” Though she sounded calm, it was clear she was ready to fight for me any way she could, the level difference between her and Pacore be damned.
“Now, now, nothing of the sort,” Pacore gestures for Mother to remain seated. “Contrary to what your daughter believes, I’m not a monster. However,” the old man coughs awkwardly. “As previously stated, I’m running quite a bit behind schedule. I would love nothing more than to allow Aaliyah to remain for a few months once the baby is born—”
“Then why can’t I?” I interrupt him the same way he did to me earlier, though he doesn’t appear bothered by it. In fact, he enjoys it—the weirdo.
“Because it will be dangerous. For you,” Pacore paused dramatically before gesturing at everyone else in the room, “And for them.”
“I’m sorry, but can you elaborate on that for us?” Headman Downs asks nervously from opposite Pacore. “How would her staying here put any of us in danger?”
“It’s really quite simple, really,” he explains. “She can’t stay, because I can’t stay. And if I can’t stay, she certainly can’t stay. Things, unfortunately, aren’t as simple as they once were. Before, young Aalyiah was a once-in-a-lifetime genius blacksmith, but now—with her levels,” Pacore shakes his head remorsefully. “I might have considered it if nobody else knew about her; sadly, I mistakenly brought my traveling companion with me, and have been kicking myself ever since.”
“You mean General Pitz,” Mom guesses correctly.
“Exactly,” Pacore lets out a small sigh. “I allowed her to accompany me here to alleviate some of my boredom, to rub her nose in it if you will,” he snickers momentarily before frowning again. “However, I could’ve never imagined Aaliyah would’ve grown as much as she has, as fast as she has.”
“I don’t know the full scope of what they encountered in that forest, as even my most devout apprentice remains stubbornly tight-lipped about it, but whatever it was, young Aaliyah is now at the level she’d be considered a national asset by any nation’s standards—Including my own. And that’s not even taking her age into account.”
“No, the moment General Pitz and I leave this village, the good general is going to return to Olebert the first chance she gets, and she’ll be honor-bound to report Aaliyah’s existence to them. They likely won’t try anything so long as I’m relatively nearby, but I shudder to think what might happen if I were to leave her behind and return to Scholl on my own.”
“Please believe me when I say, I would love nothing more than to leave her here for another two or three months, but it’s simply not possible,” Pacore concludes solemnly.
For a moment, the air is so tense nobody can speak.
My gut tells me Pacore is genuinely concerned about my safety, but that doesn’t stop me from glancing at Tabitha for a second opinion. We lock eyes for only a moment, neither of us says anything, but I know that she agrees with her master.
Since I’ve known her, Tabitha has told me multiple times that I’d already outgrown my tiny village, but it’s never hit me more so than right now. Forget about people like Lennard Grey trying to use me to grow their influence in their local company; there was about to be a tug-of-war match between nations, and I was both the rope and the prize.
And here I was, already contractually bound to Pacore while his kingdom controls the land my village sits on.
“If all that’s true, then what will happen once I leave?”
“Ideally. Nothing,” Pacore tells me in an unusually serious tone before smirking challengingly. “Realistically. Spies. Lots and lots of spies scurrying about.”
“And my family? The village?” I ask as I struggle to unclench my fists.
“They should be fine.” I can tell Pacore is trying to sound reassuring, but forgive me if I’m skeptical. After all, he just said we were leaving in roughly two weeks, a few minutes ago, before telling us his presence was the only reason Olebert wouldn’t try anything.
“Don’t,” Pacore holds up a hand to stop me before I voice my very valid concerns. “I can see the doubt written all over your face, and you’re not the only one.”
Glancing around the room, I see Sandra shooting me worried glances while stroking her protruding belly, Camden appears to be moments away from passing out, and my mom looks like she wants to hug me and never let go. Everyone else was also showing varying levels of concern, either for me or, I suspect, the village.
“No doubt there will be lots of eyes on your family and the village in general, but there is little chance Olebert will make a move. Not once you are gone,” Pacore explains patiently as if it were only obvious.
“Are you sure about that?” Sandra’s mother asks while rubbing comforting circles on her husband’s back.
“99% sure,” Pacore admits with a self-deprecating chuckle while grabbing a slice of bread and using it to cradle a sausage, copying my creation. He then places sliced wortel on top as a topping, along with a few other vegetables that have no business being placed on a hot dog.
I gag as he takes a bite out of his hideous creation, but he swallows it all the same.
“Don’t take this the wrong way, but Olebert isn’t interested in Spotted Creek Village, or its people,” Pacore tells everyone as he wipes his mouth and brushes a few stray breadcrumbs from his beard. “You’re only worth taking hostage if Aaliayh is still in the village. But once she leaves, doing so will be pointless.”
“Can you please explain your reasoning, Master Pacore?”
Pacore nods to Mom, squaring his shoulders. “If she were weaker, taking any number of you as hostages might have worked, but now that she’s basically guaranteed to sail past level 100, it becomes a moot point.”
Suddenly, Pacore gets a far-off look in his eyes. “People as strong as us are rare. Rarer than rare, even. Nations usually prefer not to antagonize us if they can help it.” Slowly, he comes back to reality and looks at me with a kind of fervent look I’ve never seen before, sending shivers down my spine. “And your child is better than all of them, better than me.”
Everyone in the room sucks in a big breath of air. Meanwhile, I’m stuck in a staring contest with Pacore, unable to look away.
“You will go on to do great things. Call it an old man’s intuition,” Pacore addresses me directly as if it were only us in the room.
“To put it bluntly, Olebert can’t afford to make enemies with you. They’ll send countless spies to watch over your family and everybody else you’ve ever interacted with. They’ll gather information, devise bribes, anything they can do to win you over to their side, but they won’t touch your family. It’d be a death sentence. Maybe not at this moment, but in the future—” Pacore trails off, leaving the rest unsaid.
Again, I’m reminded that Pacore wasn’t some senile old man. He hides his power so well, and the way he gets underneath my skin makes it so easy to forget that he’s considered one of the strongest people on the continent for a reason. It’s too easy to forget that he’s hundreds of years old.
But then there are these moments where he drops the act and gets serious, and I’m reminded just how strong he really is. Who, He, is.
“Some may consider me invincible. Reckless. Maybe they’re right, but that doesn’t mean I don’t enter a battle without considering the possibility that I might lose. I can’t guarantee your family’s safety,” Pacore continues to look me dead in the eyes. For a split second, all the mana between us vanishes before returning just as fast as if nothing had ever happened.
The only other two people in the room who could’ve possibly sensed the change in mana were Tabitha and Sandra, but neither of them looked like they just felt Pacore’s mana zone activate, leaving me with so many questions I had no answers to.
Did Pacore have that much control over his mana zone? Did they feel anything? What else could he do?
All valid questions, but not the most important one. Something else was bothering me. Something more important, like how did Pacore know I knew about his mana zone in the first place? Or that I knew what it meant? I only just learned the particulars of his technique today, and I was positive nobody else was around when Tabitha told me.
Did he guess? Did he activate it on a whim to test me? I don’t have time to come to an answer because Pacore wasn’t done talking.
“I’m not a god. I’m not infallible. But I’ll do my best to protect the people you care about, or may the gods smite me where I am,” Pacore boldly proclaims without a hint of hesitation, with a presence that fills the entire room.
Several people, mainly Camden’s sons, flinch backward as if a bolt of lightning might pierce Camden’s house right then and there, but Tabitha doesn’t. Nor do I.
Pacore smiles brightly at me when I don’t so much as twitch under his scrutiny, before subtly shifting back into his lackadaisical persona. “I’m not a betting man,” he tells the room as he leans back in his chair and takes another bite of his food, which I only just now notice is still in his hands. “As warriors, we make our own luck, and this is no different.”
“Here is what is going to happen,” Pacore begins, only to pause and glance longingly at his waterskin, which is resting against my hip. He begs me with his eyes so much that I can’t help but roll my own as the previous tension begins to feel like a bad dream.
I turn to Sandra, who nods, giving me the go-ahead, so I hand Pacore his alcohol with a reluctant sigh. “Just one drink,” I narrow my eyes threateningly, making him laugh.
“A big one then,” he proclaims before uncorking his waterskin and throwing his head back. Pacore takes three huge gulps of the abomination he calls alcohol, quickly sealing the container again afterwards before all our eyes start to water from its vapors.
“Hoh,” Pacore whistles. “That sure hits the spot. Where was I again?” He twists in his seat and makes a show of asking Tabitha.
“The plan, Master,” she replies with little emotion.
“Ah, yes. The Plan.” Pacore nods exaggeratedly. “Here is how things are going to work for the near future. My men and I will set out in two days with General Pitz, while my apprentice and young Aaliyah stay behind in the village. I’ll escort the general back to Drey, at which point I suspect she will immediately return to her country.”
“I’ll wait in Drey for a few days, settling matters, putting on a show for any nearby spies. After that, I’ll escort the lesser dragon materials to Teeburn and pass them off to my subordinates, so that I know they make it back to Scholl personally. I’ll wait there until the two of you arrive,” Pacore winks at Tabitha and me.
“Teeburn and Yleles are roughly the same distance away from Drey. I’ll be close enough to respond if Olebert is stupid enough to surprise us, though I highly doubt they’ll try anything knowing how close I’ll be. That said, the two of you can’t let your guards down.”
“We won’t,” Tabitha responds confidently, standing at attention.
“I know you won’t,” Pacore coos as he tries to reach up to pet her head like a child, but Tabitha easily sidesteps his obviously half-hearted attempt. He shrugs again before turning his attention back to the rest of us. “Once the three of us are back in Scholl, the pressure on Spotted Creek Village should lessen, but don’t worry, I won’t be leaving your village unprotected,” Pacore tells Camden with a smile that promised blood should he be proven otherwise.
“Does that mean you will be leaving behind some of your soldiers?” Our headman clears his throat nervously.
“What, this lot?” Pacore jerks a thumb over his shoulder at where I can only imagine an Escort Knight would usually be standing. “I could leave them all behind, and they wouldn’t be able to protect themselves, much less this village,” he exaggerates.
“No; I won’t be saddling you with babysitting duty,” Pacore snickers to himself. “While I’m in Teeburn, I’ll send for one of my older retired apprentices back in Scholl. I’m not sure who yet, but I’m sure one of them will enjoy an extended vacation if I ask. And don’t worry,” he assures Camden, “this isn’t me taking over your village by proxy. Whoever I send will be under strict orders to work with Spotted Creek, not govern it—Not like any of them would want to do such a thing.”
“That’s…that’s…” Sandra’s dad stutters emotionally as he jumps to his feet. “That’s incredibly generous of you!” Camden finally gets out, looking like he’s ready to throw himself at Pacore’s feet. “We’ll get started on a residence for him as soon as our walls are completed!” He quickly promises, only to be put in his place by his daughter immediately.
“What’s this, ‘We,’ Dad?” Sandra’s eyes narrow dangerously, “In case you don’t remember, Del is the one sourcing 90% of the materials, and he only works with my husband because he’s Aaliyah’s brother. Remember?”
“Yes, but—”
“But nothing,” Sandra stops her foot, both metaphorically and physically. “You know I’ve barely gotten any time with my husband these last few months, and now you’re already planning his next project. Shame on you. Shame!”
“But. But. This is important.” Camden tries to get Sandra to see reason, but he is already breaking rule number one. Never, and I mean never, argue with a pregnant woman.
“I don’t care,” Sandra moves in for the kill. “And what’s wrong with them staying with you the same way Tabitha did?”
“Well…. Umm….” Camden desperately looks around the room for help, but everyone looks away from him, signaling that he is on his own and that they want no part in this, especially his wife, which should’ve been his first clue to give up. But, no, I see a lightbulb appear over his head, not physically, but there might as well have been.
“Master Pacore,” Camden turns toward the old man who was enjoying himself entirely too much watching the drama unfold in front of him. “Whoever you send, it’s understandable to say that they’ll be here for a while, yes?”
“Probably,” Pacore confirms with a smile reminiscent of a man watching a play, though Camden turns back towards his daughter too quickly to recognize this.
“See, this isn’t like with Tabitha, Sweety.” We all watch as Camden kneels in front of his pregnant daughter and gently takes her hands into his own. “They might be staying in our village for years. Years. Now you know me, I would be honored to host someone like that in my own house.”
Headman Down’s words are sweet. Too sweet. Oh-ho, so he’s breaking out the skills now. Bold choice.
“But think about it, how could your mother or I ever be able to accommodate someone that prestigious, for that long, in our merger domicile?” Camden leans over and kisses the back of Sandra’s hand, all while looking at her with puppy-dog eyes.
The whole room holds its breath, waiting for Sandra’s reaction, and at first, it appears Headman Downs succeeded in convincing my friend to lend her husband—my brother—for yet another long-term project, as not just any house would be good enough to justify Pacore’s apprentice—someone more senor than Tabitha—living anywhere else.
“Dad,” Sandra’s face softens into a sickeningly sweet smile as she pulls her hands apart from his. Ever so slowly, she reaches up to brush the back of her hand against his face in a gentle fashion. Camden interprets this as her agreeing with him and smiles brightly, but the rest of us know better.
From where we were sitting, we could see that while Sandra looked relaxed, it was only skin-deep; her body was tenser than a Karhu ready to pounce on its unsuspecting prey.
Quicker than a snake, the hand that was inches away from her father’s face flashes and locks onto one of his ears.
“Ow! Ow! Owww!” Our headman howls like a naughty child caught by their grandmother as Sandra yanks him up off his knees by his ear.
“Did you really think I wouldn’t notice you using a persuasion skill on me, Dad?!” Sandra’s voice was colder than ice, dripping with disdain, and for a moment, it had me cursing the fact that I was currently weaponless. “Do you have any idea how many guys tried to hit on me with similar skills during my apprenticeship?”
“Careful, don’t rip my ear off!” He whimpers louder as she pulls him in close so that he can see the anger of a thousand suns in her eyes.
“News flash, Dad, it was a lot. You learn to see through the bullshit quickly.” Then Sandra starts to grin diabolically, showing all her teeth. “Though that didn’t stop me from lighting a few pants on fire to get my point across. But I don’t need to do that with you, do I?” Sandra’s smile was predatory, just daring her father to give her a reason.
“Nope. No. You certainly don’t,” Camden hurriedly replies, which is when Sandra finally took pity on the man and let go of his ear.
“Good, so we’re in agreement then.” I watch, impressed as Sandra folds her arms over her massive stomach, looking like a queen on her throne.
“But,” Camden whimpers one last time, only for Sandra to cut him off with a look that could melt steel.
Finally, Camden slinks back to his seat next to his wife, head bowed in defeat. For her part, Sarette just gives him a look that said he should’ve known better, especially since he was a father of three himself. You think he would know better.
“Besides, after the baby is born and we’re once again settled, Richard already promised me that he would start working on my mage’s tower,” Sandra announces shamelessly, leaving everyone in the room stunned.
Almost everyone.
Meanwhile, Pacore is sitting in his chair, chuckling like Santa Claus, having a good time. His laugh is contagious and easily breaks through the awkward atmosphere, and soon, half the room is laughing with him. Even I’m smiling, but it’s only because I support Sandra. I swear.
“There’s no rush,” Pacore adds to the conversation once the laughter dies down. “None of my apprentices would dare disrespect me by being rude to their hosts. A single room is fine until you can find other accommodations, though, I don’t think a single house or a mage’s tower should be your main concern just yet.”
“What do you mean?” Nicolas, Camden’s eldest son and Sandra’s big brother, speaks up for the first time since Tabitha and I arrived for lunch. Personally, I’m surprised he said anything at all, but I guess it makes sense, seeing how he was the future headman of our village and it was his job to ask questions while his father tried not to disappear into his seat in embarrassment.
“Oh, nothing much,” Pacore responds lightly, though the look on his face says otherwise. “Just that there might be other projects your village might want to work on first before any of you get carried away.”
And like that, Camden’s head snaps up, and he’s all ears again.
“Personally, I’d recommend a decent-sized inn,” Pacore suggests as he finishes off his vegetable-covered hot dog.
“Why would we need an inn?” Sarette asks before her husband can. “Other than you and your men—And General Pitz that onetime—Only one person and his three bodyguards have visited our village in recent memory.”
“Maybe,” Pacore nods along before giving Camden and his wife a mischievous wink. “But that’s in the past when you were a no-name village out in the middle of nowhere.”
“And now?” Our headman hesitantly asks.
“Now? Now, you are a village that produced a genius over level 90. A village with walls. With resources—Magic region resources,” Pacore smiles brightly with a fond look in his eyes. “Sooner rather than later, people are going to show up, and you’re going to need a place for them to sleep—At least if you don’t want them camping all over the place getting in people’s way.”
“You can’t be serious,” Brandon Downs, Sandra's other older brother, doesn’t believe what he’s hearing, and neither do I until I take a step back and look at things and—
“Oh, gods,” I curse just loud enough for everyone to hear.
“Figured it out, have you?” Pacore nods approvingly at me. “I already mentioned the spies Olebert is going to send, but there is more than one reason I’m stationing one of my apprentices here. It might take a few months for word to spread, but your village is about to be besieged by the greediest, fame-seeking, craziest people in the world—Adventures.”
“People chasing money and levels from across Scholl will consider visiting here once word of the winged serpent spreads. And believe me, adventures talk. You’re lucky, play your cards right, and you’ll be the wealthiest village of Scholl and Olebert combined,” Pacore cackles maniacally, eventually having to wipe a tear from his eye.
“Well, wealthier if what my apprentice told me last night remains true,” Pacore nods in my direction. “I’d appreciate it if you stopped by my camp tomorrow morning and separated all the materials you plan on leaving in the village. Just do me a favor and leave everything you plan on keeping behind with the snake materials, and I’ll see to it that they’re shipped to my mansion in Scholl.”
“Aaliayh, what is he talking about?” Sandra asks me curiously.
“Oh yeah, I guess I forgot to mention it last night in all the excitement,” I rub the back of my head sheepishly.
“And with that, it sounds like you can use some privacy,” Camden surprises all of us by standing up and dusting himself off. “Thanks for making lunch interesting,” he smiles at each of us in turn, stopping with me last. “Oh, and one last thing before I head out to remind my men that they should be working harder. Last time I was here, we had a lovely little match with you and your stone-kin friend. I think we should do it again, only this time I want you and Tabitha to try taking me on.”
“Master!” Tabitha’s already-rigged posture straightens to supernatural degrees.
“Sounds like fun, right?” Pacore grins, challenging me.
Without even thinking about it, I feel my lips start to twitch upward. I wasn’t the same girl I was months ago when he first barged his way into our village. You can’t even compare the two. “Sure, why not. I’ll never pass up the chance to kick your old ass.”
“Aaliayh! I swear if you keep talking like that—!” Mom starts berating me from across the table, but stops halfway when she sees me murdering Pacore with my eyes and him enjoyingit.
“I swear, the two of you,” I pretend not to hear that last part.
“Tomorrow, then,” Pacore throws his head back and laughs jollily. “Sleep well, I expect you to be at your best tomorrow. If you hold my precious Tabitha back, I’ll make you regret it later,” he threatens/promises me as he and she walk out of Camden’s solar.
….
For a moment, nobody says anything until we all hear Camden’s front door open and close.
“Well, this will be exciting,” Sandra breaks the silence by supporting me with a smile. “Now what's this about materials and making us all rich?”
Here’s to living in interesting times.
**********
Author’s notes:
6,600 words, so decently long chapter.
Oof, this took me forever. I wrote over half of this chapter before thinking parts of it didn’t sound right. Plus, I forgot a bunch of open plot points I left, so I had to reread the last 15 or so chapters all the way back to the beginning of the winged serpent fight.
The one good thing that came out of it was my bright idea to quickly summarize each chapter in a separate document, so that I could better keep track of everything.
Would any of you be interested in reading something like that? I’d need to go through and edit it a lot, but I can make a post summarizing everything since Tabitha and Aaliyah left the crater at the center of the Magic-Dense region. That’s 37 chapters worth of recap. Or I could go back even further to when they first entered the magic-dense region in the first place, though that would be a lot more work and would take longer, as I’d work on it in between new chapters.
Please share your thoughts below, and as always, thanks for reading.