Thirtieth Day of July, In the Year of the Empire 6777

Breakfast on the sixth day in my dining room at sunrise was, well, it was merely different. I did not dislike it, but it was almost as if someone was playing a joke on me, and I kept expecting to wake up. As I ate, my thoughts focused on the recrimination of myself. In the future, I must account for myself far better than I did when I bought this property so blindly.

My carriage was ready, and two of my knights would provide escort. My steward directed me to go to a noble clothier he knew, as I needed to have my heraldry designed. Then I needed to go to the royal court to submit the documents Mr. Hox had prepared with a copy of my heraldry. These chores took several hours but were complete by the early afternoon.

My mounted knights were already using heater shields, so that formed the base of my heraldry. The background color would be medium sky blue. Green ivy, symbolizing eternal life, started at the point and followed both edges to the top. An imperial eagle, the two-headed kind, was the symbol of 'fortitude and magnanimity of mind.' It flew above a book, denoting 'learning and a willingness to listen.' Below the book was an otter, representing one who is 'intelligent and industrious.' The last touch was my family name, Perrin, written on the book cover.

The carriage took me to the Emporium, where I dismissed the knights and carriage to return to the Manor. They would stop at a recommended armor's shop and order sixty new heater shields with my heraldry painted on them.

Thankfully, the leather worker in my hamlet was able to craft studded leather armor with the proper materials. The blacksmith was providing the metal studs, but most of the ready to craft leather had yet to be boughten.

The blacksmith could make decent, slightly curved, mid-length, sabers, and daggers strong enough to chop wood. I may have to buy some in the short term depending on how quickly the knights find soldiers to employ.

My coin purse was significantly lighter by the time I returned to school.

It was so lovely to be back in the library, just the smell of the place comforted me. I stopped at the main desk to pick up any books that had been set aside for me over the last five days. To my surprise, there was a cart full of them. I pushed the cart to the 'Instructor's Desk' only to find another instructor sitting there.

Smiling, I said, "Good afternoon, Instructor Gable."

The older man did not look happy, and I did not receive a smile back. Gable then growled at me, "It's about time you showed up. Where have you been?"

The 'keep calm' mantra was already being repeating in my head. "As I informed the front office, I was away to test some spells that could not be tested here in the city. What seems to be the problem, Instructor Gable?"

Gable looked incredulous, "What is the problem? You created this mess, and then you just disappeared."

"Please explain what the issue is, and perhaps I can fix it, sir."

Gable made a harumph sound and spat out, "The students started to complain that there was no instructor available here in the library, that’s what. Why in the world did you start this? Now the brats are pestering us with questions all the time, and we have other things to do, you know."

I simply nodded then looked at the open logbook on the desk. "You've answered two questions in the time you've been here today?"

Gable glowered at me, "Yes, I had to be here since lunch when I have had other things to do."

Keep calm. Keep calm. "So, were you assigned to this duty today?"

"Yes, damn it, I was!" Gable shouted at me.

"By whom? I had this arranged as a voluntary duty with the head librarian."

Gable was getting red in the face now, "By whom? The Dean, of course. Your rabble kept asking when another instructor would be available. So, the Dean assigned us to four two-hour shifts every day. And it does not matter what you set it up with the librarian, again, because of your mob."

"Just four instructors?" I had to ask slightly taken aback.

Gable shouted again, "No, you nitwit! Every instructor has to take a two-hour shift in rotation."

I was staying calm on the surface, but this was getting ridiculous.

I spoke slowly. "You're upset because you 'might' have a two-hour shift each month. To assist students as a paid instructor."

Instructor Gable was now sitting there gaping at me. He did that for thirty-seconds before his brain worked it out. Red anger changed to red embarrassment. "Well, well, you’re here, I'm leaving!" And with that, he quickly got up and walked out of the library.

After the door banged shut, I sighed.

To my left, someone started to clap softly. Quickly turning, I saw that it was Dean Weber clapping. There was no smile on his face. He stopped clapping and walked over to me with the head librarian following him.

I took a deep breath before speaking. "Good afternoon Dean Weber, Head Librarian Moss."

"Good, you say?" The Dean asked in a deadpan voice.

Quickly thinking, I said, "Thank you for arranging the help for the student's Dean Weber. This effort to help students shouldn't cause issues. For that, I do apologize to both you and Head Librarian Moss."

The Dean studied me for a long moment. "Next time you want to start a project…" the Dean trailed off, looking at my sash with its new heraldic symbol. He started again, "The next time you want to start a project that affects others SIR Instructor Mage Hartson, you will first get permission from me."

Copying my knights, a bit, I responded, "Yes, sir. I will certainly do that, sir."

The Dean nodded and then frowned as he looked at my sash again. "I understood you were testing spells these last few days, not whatever this is, SIR Hartson," he said, waving at my sash while still emphasizing 'Sir.'

"Yes, sir, I did complete my testing. It was necessary to have a private, out of the way place where no one would be hurt. I went to a highly recommended man about finding such a place and, um, well, he took it a bit further than I had intended. He set me up with a full barony, with four knights, and over one-hundred other people, that I'm now responsible for."

The Dean started to say something, then stopped to look at me a bit longer. "Are you a fool Sir Hartson?" Thankfully, no emphasis on the 'Sir' this time.

I flinched at his question, but he was right, and I knew it too. "Yes, I was foolish in this because I did not ask enough questions ahead of time. I won't be having that problem again, I assure you, sir."

He nodded. "That would be most wise, Sir Hartson."

It hit me then that without a doubt, I would be hearing a lot more "Sir Hartson" honorifics than necessary for some time to come.

The Dean looked at the pinboard and back at the desk set up before saying, "Well done." He then simply walked away.

The head librarian and I just looked at each other for a bit, neither quite believing we herd the Dean correctly.

I again thanked Head Librarian Moss for his help and patience.

He told me it was no bother and that he had not had so much fun in years. He was particularly happy that all the "old geezer instructors" were so "riled up."

I'm confident I did not find it amusing that the other instructors were so "riled up," as he put it. I was, in fact, sure that they would remind me often and painfully, of the many difficulties I had imposed upon them.

The students in the library had not said a word until I sat down. It was evident that they were whispering about what happed to each other quite unapologetically.