Chapter 2.6:

The King’s Road made traveling between the cities really convenient since all of them were paved evenly. Compared to our journey to and from the Roost on the uneven mountain ledges, the King’s Road allowed caravans to plow along fairly quickly. Although there wasn’t much scenery to enjoy since the big trees that lined the road obscured most of the horizon.

Later in the afternoon, we arrived at the Capital, or at least we were lined up to enter the city gates.

The line moved along at a steady pace although not everyone was allowed in. Some travelers and merchants were turned away.

I looked at the merchant in front of us who was clearly upset at being denied entry for trying to bring in cages filled with pitch black spiders about the size of my head.

The merchant pulled his cart to the side as he tried to continue pleading with the inspections officer as we were asked to move up to the gate for processing.

That’s when I saw that one of the spiders was rattling its cage but stopped when it noticed me staring.

Why is it staring back?

The spider continued to stare back at me. Its two front legs suddenly bent together as if in prayer. It started pointing to me and then to the lock on its cage.

Is it asking me to release it?

There was something about the spider that mesmerized me. I slowly got up and the spider seemed elated. But before I could jump off the back of the caravan to unlock the cage, we were suddenly in motion again and the sudden lurch of our caravan made me topple and fall back down on my seat.

As we passed through the Capital’s gate, the spider disappeared from my line of sight and I snapped out of my daze.

“Hey Paul…” I said to the boy who was seated across from me reading his book.

“Hmm?” Paul replied without looking up.

“Did you see that strange spider?” I asked while pointing to the outside of the gate.

“Nope.” Paul said shortly as he turned a page.

“Maybe I was imagining things then.” I said unsurely.

Abram dropped us off at the Fairy Lights Inn as he proceeded to the local stables to park our caravan.

Paul and I entered and requested for a room as well as some supper.

I looked around at the other guests and the animated conversations going around the dining hall and my stomach growled from the smell of the food being served.

When Abram arrived, we ate together and headed upstairs to rest up for the evening.

By the time I woke up, it was already mid-morning. The sunlight from the window already felt a little too hot. I bolted up.

I slept in! Why didn’t they wake me?!

I looked around the room to see two empty beds.

I quickly got dressed and proceeded to the door when it suddenly opened. Paul was carrying a tray filled with bread and jam.

“You’re finally awake.” Paul said happily as he laid down the tray on the round table in the middle of the room.

“Ah yeah…” I replied in embarrassment as I joined him at the table. “Why didn’t you guys wake me up?”

“Oh well, dad said to let you sleep in since you were tired from the journey.” Paul explained as he started cutting the loaf of bread with a knife and serving me a piece.

“Where is Abram?” I asked as I nibbled on the warm bread.

“He said he would visit an old friend. He told me we should go ahead and have breakfast.” Paul explained in between mouthfuls of bread.

I nodded as I reached for the jam. We ate in silence for a bit when I thought of something I wanted to ask Paul.

“Paul?” I started. He looked up at me.

“Are you really okay with having me as a brother?” I asked quietly.

Paul paused and started thinking.

His silence was getting me anxious.

“Yep.” Paul replied simply as he continued eating his bread.

“I mean, Abram isn’t forcing you, right?” I pressed.

“Adi, dad isn’t making me do anything. We wouldn’t be here right now if I was against it.” Paul explained. “It’s always been me and him. My mom died when I was just a baby, I don’t even remember her much. Dad raised me all by himself. He always says that he and I are a team. We don’t make big decisions that the other person isn’t okay with.”

I looked down at my plate and gave him a small nod.

“Right. No more talk of that, little bro.” Paul said as he started clearing our plates. “Help me bring this down. I promised the cook we’d help wash these dishes in exchange for letting us bring up food.”

I gave him an enthusiastic smile and we proceeded to the kitchen.

After washing our plates and utensils, we went back to the room to wait for Abram. Around a little before noon he returned.

“Good morning, boys.” Abram greeted us.

“Hey dad, did you see your friend?” Paul asked.

“Oh yes, son. We talked about a lot of things. Haven’t seen him in a while but I wanted to get his advice on some business-related matters. He was kind enough to oblige and he even gave me a small parting gift.” Abram smiled as he patted his small satchel.

“Right. So we’re off to the Royal Registrar’s Office now?” Paul asked.

“Definitely. You ready, Adi?” Abram asked.

“Yup! Let’s go!” I answered as I headed out the door.

“Now hold on, son.” Abram stopped me. “You need to change first.”

I looked down at my clothes. “What’s wrong with what I’m wearing?”

Abram headed to my bed to grab my bag of clothes and pulled out the noble shirt and pants that they bought for me before. He laid it out on my bed. “Lord Jerome isn’t only a civil officer, he is a high-ranking noble that has close ties with the royal family. We want to be absolutely presentable.”

After we cleaned up and changed to nicer clothes, we walked along the sidewalk towards the city center. There was a lot of foot traffic all around. There were also twice as many caravans and carriages along the road. A guard was stationed almost every block.

Wow, it’s so different from North Haven. But am I crazy or is the temperature roughly the same?

“Hey, how come the temperature in the Capital is the same as in North Haven? Shouldn’t we be warmer since we’re not all high up?” I asked Abram.

“Ah, you see son, every city’s internal temperature is regulated by magic.” Abram explained as he pointed to the big spheres on top of the city walls. “Those spheres are enchanted with either fire or ice magic to ensure that a city is comfortable, not too cold and not too hot. Maintaining those spheres is one of the main responsibilities of a City Engineer.”

I felt amazed.

Maybe I can also be an engineer! That sounds like an interesting job.

As Paul and I took in the sights of the Capital, Abram would explain what certain things were or give some history about the monuments.

Eventually, we arrived at the Capital’s regulation sector.

The guard at the entrance gave us a cursory look but ushered us in without much trouble.

I thought that the Royal Registrar’s Office was the biggest building there at the end of the road just like the Permits Office in North Haven, but Abram suddenly stopped in front of an inconspicuous white building that had a sign reading, “Royal Registrar’s Office.”

“Here we are, mind your manners, you two.” Abram reminded us.

We both nodded and followed him inside.

The interior of the building was well-decorated but it was by no means as lavish as the Permit’s Office in North Haven.

At the center of the room was a banner that read, “Service to the King means service to the people.”

There were several counters inside that said, “Disputes and Corrections”, “Land”, “Birth”, “Marriage”, “Death”, and “Inquiries”. There were many people lined up in front of each counter with the first one having the most people.

We proceeded to the counter for “Inquiries”. A kind-looking lady greeted us. “Welcome to the Royal Registrar’s Office. How might I help you today?”

“Good day to you, madam.” Abram started with a small bow. “My name is Abram Finch from North Haven. I was wondering if I might file a petition to adopt here. We've run into some problems at the Old Orphanage and were given this letter of recommendation by the acting head matron.” Abram handed the lady the papers along with Sister Anna’s letter.

The lady looked over the documents meticulously. “Wait a moment please.” She then left her counter and proceeded to the back.

After a few minutes she returned. “Lord Jerome wishes to speak with you, sir. Kindly proceed to the right and follow the hallway. It’s the first door on your left.” The lady returned the documents to Abram.

We thanked her and headed down the hallway. At the end, we saw a door that had a plaque, “Royal Registrar”.

Abram knocked on the door three times.

“Come in.” We heard a voice call out from inside.

We entered the room and saw stacks and stacks of documents inside. Behind the desk at the back sat a gray-haired man in stately clothes with a small monocle stamping papers with a seal. He stood up as we approached and I saw that he was about as tall as Abram.

“Ah yes, sit down please.” He gestured to the couches in front of his desk.

“A pleasure to meet you, Lord Jerome.” Abram bowed and we followed suit. “My name is…” But Abram stopped when Lord Jerome held up his hand.

“No need for introductions. Gina already told me.” Lord Jerome gestured to the door on the other side of the room. “So Master Abram, which of these two boys is Adi?”

I raised my hand.

“Ho ho! Quite the assertive one aren’t you.” Lord Jerome remarked jovially.

I immediately lowered my hand and looked at Abram in panic.

Was that rude? I should have waited for Abram to introduce me.

I shot Abram an apologetic look and kept my head down.

“HA HA HA.” Lord Jerome laughed. “Doesn’t seem like the troublemaker Sister Anna described in her letter.”

I was mortified. I could feel my cheeks flushing red.

“Now, in all seriousness though.” Lord Jerome said as he pulled out a long sword and began polishing it. “Why are you adopting this boy?” He said with a menacing glare at Abram.

Abram started getting agitated, “My lord?”

“You heard me. Why are you adopting him?” Lord Jerome repeated as he raised his long sword seemingly examining the edge of the blade.

“Well, he has no one, my Lord. We happened to have run into him and over time we got attached.” Abram stuttered.

Lord Jerome stared coldly into Abram’s eyes and Abram held that gaze. The tension in the room was palpable.

After what seemed like hours, Lord Jerome lowered his sword and returned it to its scabbard. “Right then, that’ll do.” He said cheerfully.

Abram wiped the sweat from his forehead and breathed out a sigh of relief.

“Apologies for the scare, Master Abram. Had to make sure I wasn’t signing this boy over to slavers you see. Have had a lot of incidents recently of children being abused by adopters.” Lord Jerome explained as he pulled out some paperwork.

Lord Jerome proceeded to scribble something on an ornate parchment and proceeded to stamp it. “Sign here please, Master Abram.”

Abram signed the parchment.

“And there we go. Here’s your certificate of adoption for young Adi.” Lord Jerome remarked as he rolled up the parchment and handed it over to Abram.

“Just like that, my Lord?” Abram said, confused.

“Yes well… Sister Anna certified all your paperwork and I trust her assessment of the veracity of your documents. Besides, her letter of recommendation was very persuasive about the merits of your adoption of young Adi.” Lord Jerome explained.

“So does that mean, I’m officially part of their family now.” I asked Lord Jerome.

“Why yes, young man. You most certainly are.” Lord Jerome replied with a kind expression.

I felt elated and ran to hug Lord Jerome. He seemed shocked but I felt his hand pat my head.

I let go of him and turned around to see both Abram and Paul with shocked expressions. I realized I broke protocol again.

I faced Lord Jerome and bowed, “I’m sorry for my rudeness!”

“HA HA HA!” Lord Jerome bellowed. “Quite alright, young Adi. I don’t mind one bit.”

I like this person.

I grinned up at him and then at Abram.

Abram let out a nervous laugh. “Thank you, my Lord.”

“No problem at all.” Lord Jerome replied with a wave of his hand as he returned to his desk.

“Actually, my Lord. Could we also ask for your assistance?” Abram said tentatively.

“Hmm?” Lord Jerome remarked as he turned around.

“We were also hoping to get Adi assessed for his affinity while we were in the Capital.” Abram explained.

Oh… so that’s the other business we had here.

“Of course. Go to Gina and get a signed permission slip. Then just present the certificate of adoption and permission slip to the Learning and Development Center.” Lord Jerome said absentmindedly.

“Thank you again, my Lord.” Abram replied.

“Thank you also, my Lord.” I added.

Lord Jerome looked up and waved.

We exited the room and got the signed permission slip from the lady called Gina.

Afterwards, we exited the building and proceeded to the Learning and Development Center.