Opening his eyes, Nero felt how sun rays tickled his face, leaving a pleasant feeling of warmth. A view of the sunny and morning skies opened from his window in his chambers.

Ethel was also near to him, sleeping with a filled stomach and his tongue on the pillow. Nero spent a moment memorizing what happened yesterday before he felt a weak tinge of pain across his body. So, it didn’t take long for him to start his regular morning exercises.

As soon as he finished his first set of exercises, the door opened and Clara appeared, entering the room.

“Good morning, Young Master,” said the maid, bowing. “How are you feeling today?”

“Fine. But I smell a bit,” said Nero as he adjusted his neck.

“Breakfast and bath are ready. What do you want to start with?” asked Clara as she approached his bed and started cleaning it.

“Let’s start with a bath,” said Nero while Ethel released an unsatisfied growl when Clara reached the area where he was sleeping.

But Clara easily took the small griffon and put him on the floor and five minutes were enough for her to reverse the bed to its previous condition. Clara showed a satisfied smile when she finished before looking at Nero.

“Follow me, I will show you the bath’s location,” said Clara, leaving the room.

While Nero and Ethel followed Clara, the maid stopped from time to time to show different rooms. In such a manner, Nero learned he had a meditation room with a pond and calm atmosphere, study chambers with many books, an alchemy lab for starters, and a training ground on the courtyard with different obstacle courses, shooting range, wooden dolls, and other structures.

In short, Nero already got several ideas on where to spend this day when they arrived at the doors of the white marble building.

...

..

.

Nero, who just inclined back on the marble, relaxed all his muscles as hot water started pouring from below. Different chants and mechanisms made sure everything worked well and allowed to control its functions.

The water already reached his shoulders when a small black griffon jumped inside the warm water, splashing it all over the hall. While his friend swam and enjoyed their new luxury, which they rarely had back at the village, Nero released a bitter sigh as similar scenes flashed through his eyes.

His mother’s warm fingers touching his back, the boiled water, rare moments with Ethel on the pond where they swam inside the cold water just like here.

An unconscious smile appeared on Nero’s lips when he memorized those moments when sudden sounds appeared from behind. It was the sound of the opened door.

That was enough to return Nero back to reality and reverse his usual and emotionless face when he looked in that direction.

“What are you doing here?” asked Nero as he watched how Clara, dressed in silk clothes, approached him with a jug in her hands.

“To help you with your bath, Young Master,” said Clara with a smile on her lips, watching how naked Nero adjusted his posture to hide certain body parts.

His actions only widened her smile as amused flames appeared inside her eyes. The boy wanted to say something, but Clara just poured all the liquid inside her jug inside the water. The water boiled before many soapy bubbles started appearing in the hall, hiding everything below the water.

Such a sudden change made Ethel jump out of the water with a panicked expression on his face when several bubbles surrounded him from all sides.

“Now, let me help you wash your back,” said Clara with a smile as she stepped inside the water.

Nero could only clap his eyes, watching how Clara’s silk clothes quickly became wet, revealing her beautiful body, two hills, and how fog and bubbles emphasized her neck and hairs, gathered in a ponytail. The boy didn’t even know when he blushed and averted his gaze on the ceiling, looking at the many frescos illustrating the bathing women.

Only Clara, who already started watching his body, knew about it. Amused flames danced inside her eyes while the seven-year-old boy sat in his position, looking petrified from embarrassment.

...

..

.

Half an hour later, a red-faced Nero left the marble building while Clara and Ethel followed him.

His heart still bit like crazy from the recent experience, while Clara just smiled, watching his actions. In short, Nero needed some time to release some steam and relax. So, his mind didn’t mind that when Nero stepped into the forest for the short walk but followed him. Only Ethel, who wanted to sunbathe, jumped off her hands and laid on the grass behind.

Only after spending some time in the forest and watching the different herbs, plants, and trees, Nero finally gathered his composure and restored the usual color of his face. His beating heart calmed down and he already turned and looked at Clara when his maid suddenly hid him behind her figure, touching her dagger.

Only a minute later, the bushes in front of him started twitching before two big orange figures appeared before them with scary expressions and huge fangs. Their saliva reached the ground when they looked at them. Nero felt how a certain cold feeling grabbed his heart when Clara smiled and touched her space artifact.

Several big pieces of meat appeared a moment later and flew at those tigers.

“Don’t worry, Young Master, these kittens won’t touch you,” said Clara as she approached the two tigers who lashed out at the meat.

While tigers were busy eating their meals, Clara calmly caressed their ears and fur, making Nero open his mouth wide in shock. A scene in front of him was just too much. Just now, two scary-looking predators transformed into the calm cats who have just met their owner.

“How do you do that?” asked Nero, watching how tigers followed Clara’s commands, which she gave them before giving another portion of the meat.

His question only brought another smile to her lips when she looked at him.

“It’s my craft, Young Master. I have a talent to make such scary-looking beasts into my friends,” said Clara with a proud smile.

Though it surprised Nero that his maid was a tamer about whom he read in different books, he showed no reaction on his face. Now, it was a nice chance to get an answer to the question which appeared long ago.

“How many beasts are there under your control?” asked Nero, watching how Clara started contending with one tiger in force.

“I don’t know. There are too many of them, living here in the forest,” said Clara with a smile on her lips when she turned and looked at him.

Nero didn’t know why, but for a moment an unknown uneasy feeling appeared inside his heart when he looked at her face before she turned and released her tigers and ordered them to return.

“We can return now, Young Master,” said Clara as she approached him and noticed that short reaction. “Don’t worry, they know my scent and won’t touch you when you will travel in the forest.”

Nero just nodded and added new facts to his database about his new home before following his maid.

...

..

.

After their return to the manor, it didn’t take long for Nero and Ethel to finish their breakfast. So, Clara left to take care of the dishes.

Sitting on the cozy chair and watching after his griffon, a certain idea struck Nero’s mind when he stood up and approached Ethel. Since there was only his griffon and him here, Nero thought it was a good chance to check another technique he got from that voice.

So, it didn’t take long for him to cut his finger and let pour several buds of his blood to Ethel’s peak. He uniquely circulated his inner energy. As soon as several minutes passed, both Nero’s and Ethel’s eyes became gold while they froze as if they were statues, watching each other.

Only after five minutes passed, Nero returned to his senses when a certain voice struck his mind.

“Meat, I want meat.”

At first, Nero thought he seemed to hear an unknown voice, but his judgment broke when the voice repeated itself.

“A tasty, fatty meat.”

Ethel looked at Nero as he unconsciously moved his small wings.

Just now, when it repeated, Nero looked around the room, looking for the source. As a result, he only proved his judgment that he and Ethel were the only ones who were in this room. Only after a minute of another search, Nero landed his glance at the only candidate in this room.

The voice didn’t inform him about the consequences of the Golden Law technique, and now Nero couldn’t stop himself from raising his brows in surprise when he noticed how attentively his pet looked at him as if it was confused with his actions. Ethel even repeated them and also started looking around.

“Weird. There is nobody here. Who is he looking for?”

Just now, Nero solved the puzzle and starred at his only companion. Now, he knew what happened thanks to the Golden Law. It created a mental link between him and his griffon. And now, he concentrated his glance at him to see if his guess will be correct.

“Ethel, was it you? Can you hear me?”

As soon as he sent his questions, Ethel jumped on his legs from surprise before he started to look around. Just now, the small griffon mirrored Nero’s actions a moment ago.

That was enough to prove his judgment. So, Nero just stood up and took Ethel into his arms before returning to his seat.

“It’s me. Don’t worry.”

The boy and the griffon kept sitting in the armchair in total silence. Nero continued to caress the griffon while Ethel didn’t take away his glance at the boy. When Clara returned to the room, only a scene of a quiet boy and the griffon appeared before her when she opened a door a bit.

Clara continued to watch after her Young Master for some time before she noticed some tears which appeared on his face from time to time. Only now, she realized that something intimate was happening between him and his pet. So, she just bowed quickly before leaving them alone, making no sound that could interrupt them.

...

..

.

It was already evening when Nero finished his long conversation with Ethel. They didn’t even notice how the day almost ended when Nero remembered he wanted to do something else and left his manor. Thanks to a recent conversation with his only companion who knew his mother, Gustav, and villagers, Nero could appease some pain in his heart, and remember about the only mission important for him right now. It was vengeance for his mother and teacher.

That’s why Nero was now rushing towards the only building at the complex right now, followed by Clara who told him where to go.

In such a manner, it took them only half an hour to pass through the manor complex and reach the doors of the certain building where his grandfather was now working.

Nero already wanted to enter inside when two guards closed his way with their spears.

“Sorry, Young Master, but Lord asked us to tell you he is busy and can’t meet with you right now.” said one guard.

As soon as Nero heard him, many ideas appeared inside his mind, but Nero just smiled and took a small piece of the letter before he gave it to the guards.

“Give it to the Lord, then. There is everything I wanted to ask for,” said Nero as he turned to leave.

...

..

.

Sometime later, Primus and Grievous watched how their Lord read the letter which was just delivered. It was many years since they saw their Lord smile like that, and of course, it picked their interest.

As soon as Baron finished reading, he put away the letter before raising his glance and looking at his two loyal subordinates, Primus and Grievous. Of course, he noticed curious flames inside their eyes and decided not to hide the reason by giving them the letter.

“My Lord, who will get the honor to teach him?” asked Primus as he sent a warning glance at Grievous. Just like that, a tense glancing battle started between two old warriors.

Baron just kept watching at his people with the same slight smile before he cleared his throat, attracting their attention.

“Grievous, you still have work to do. Sky lizard squads are not ready yet for the new tactics and need training. So, Primus will become his martial path instructor, together with another bunch of teachers who will visit him tomorrow,” said Baron as he took the letter. “I wanted to give him some time to mourn Tiona. But if he wants to start now, I don’t mind it.”