A small bit of water hesitantly hits my face, waking me up. How water can hesitantly hit me, I don't know, but it's cold, a sharp contrast to the summer heat even as the sun barely begins to rise.

I slept much longer than I thought, I really needed this rest. Contrary to what Thomas believes, I can sleep with other people around. It's usually not an easy sleep, and I have to know them well enough to know they won't do anything against me. I'd never sleep at all if that weren't the case, though I also usually hide myself behind the bush that conceals the spot I hide my pack in.

That's not too important right now, though. What's important is that the five-year-old boy who hit me with a [Water Bolt] looks worried and a little scared.

"It's Paul, right?" I ask, and the boy nods his head. "I'm going to assume you woke me up because Hailey asked you to because the guards standing there want to talk with me?" He nods again. "You're okay."

Paul lets out a huge breath of relief. I didn't sleep behind my bush last night, but in the open in the space with the well. Hailey and her crew were all rather shaken up after the incident last night and it seems they didn't want to be too far from me in case someone attacked while they were sleeping. It probably took her a little while to actually convince him to hit me with the water so that I'd wake in a way that didn't cause me to react with violence first.

I did shift a [Flashbang Bomb] between us by instinct when the water woke me up, but discovered one was already floating between us. Apparently, I'm moving them in my sleep now. Thomas didn't mention I might do that when he told me that getting used to having a spell active at all times means I can even keep them active in my sleep. The fact that I'll instinctively move them when people approach me if I don't wake is good to know.

"Hello, Lord Benjamin," I stand and dust myself off a little. Should I put on my tunic? I need to make sure I speak better right now, he has actual guards with him rather than his party. "I wasn't told I needed to be somewhere, did I miss an appointment?"

"No," Lord Benjamin tells me. "A merchant was found dead in the slums a couple of hours ago, and we're investigating it. He was brutally tortured, and he was even missing a few bones."

"A merchant?" I ask.

Was the man they found the jackass from last night? We didn't exactly burn his body, we just left him there. People die in the slums all the time and the bodies remain either until they rot into nothing or someone actually disposes of them.

There's even a skeleton two bushes over from the one I was sleeping against. Well, it's behind the bush, but it's still there. He died when I was seven and no one ever removed his body.

"Yes," Lord Benjamin holds out a scroll with a drawing of the merchant's face on it. "He's been under consideration of being granted a title of lesser nobility and was in the city on a trip. He was supposed to visit the castle for a meeting with Father a few hours from now, but was found a few hours ago. The kids here all seem a bit too intimidated due to the guards that were with me when we approached, but I felt you might be willing to talk."

"I know him," I hand him the scroll back. "He had men attack and kidnap these kids. I rescued them, tortured him for information, and found out he was planning on brainwashing them. I ain't… I'm not a big fan of that sort of thing. He was also planning on kidnapping as many kids who had talents for magic as he could, mostly from the slums. They was gonna brainwash them into being perfect little magic soldiers. I was just gonna leave it at that, but decided to kill him after he revealed he was planning on building a rebellion 'gainst the king using his soldiers, some years from now. So I killed him instead."

Lord Benjamin starts thinking about stuff. Whoops. Did I do that wrong? Is he thinking about how I'm supposed to be punished for it? What was I supposed to do when I found out someone was planning a rebellion against the king? Maybe I should've just handed him to the guards. Minus the bones I'd already cut out of him.

Rather than ordering his guards to arrest me, or reprimanding me, Lord Benjamin draws a knife and performs a slice on his right thumb, holding it out to me.

"Will you swear under the gaze of the gods that what you told me is the truth, the entire truth, and only the truth?"

Oh, he was just wanting to see if there's a way to verify my honesty. A Blessed Statement, which is similar to a Blessed Oath, receives an affirmation from the gods that the statement is true. If it's false, the liar is punished by the gods.

"Yeah," I answer. "Yes. I'll swear it."

"Milord," one of the guards says. "The gods do not respond to such-"

"This knife is capable of cutting you," Lord Benjamin hands me the knife, and I slice my right thumb, then hand him his knife back.

We then press our thumbs together, making sure the cuts line up properly.

"I swear under the gaze of the gods that what I told ya is the truth, the entire truth, and only the truth."

Zanoralv has confirmed that Maxwell Zanroval informed Benjamin Kedridal of the truth, the entire truth, and only the truth.

That notification goes to everyone in range of the discussion, so the guards know for sure that it actually happened. If they deny it, then they are the ones who are lying.

"A… god actually responded?" The guard who Lord Benjamin interrupted asks as Lord Benjamin and I drop our hands back to our sides.

"Yes," Lord Benjamin answers. "Zanoralv, the God of Magic, always binds Max's Blessed Oaths, so I suspected he would confirm the statement through a Blessed Statement."

It also leaves no scar, unlike a Blessed Oath. My right thumb has no scars on it because of that – the one from the Blessed Oath cleared up when Colt and I agreed to end the camping trip early. Now I only have the one on my left thumb.

"A god acknowledges a kid from the slums?" The guard asks.

"Jared," Lord Benjamin says. "The gods never abandoned us, they simply went silent. It is entirely possible that Max isn't the only person they've bound Blessed Oaths with, just the first we've learned of it from. Had Max and Colton not made one, we might not have learned that they bind his. He's implied that he's done it plenty of times, yet we never heard of it. And you know the churches look for every sign of the gods they can find."

Lord Benjamin pauses for a moment, then gives me an apologetic look.

"This will likely get back to the churches now," he tells me. "So you may have some from there bothering you for every detail, Max. My family will make sure they know to respect your boundaries and that you're liable to react violently if they persist.

"As I was saying," Lord Benjamin continues. "The fact that Max has made multiple Blessed Oaths yet it never reached us implies that the gods have been hiding it. It is not outside of their power to redirect minds, cause thoughts to slip from focus, influence events to prevent someone from saying something they were about to say. After discovering Max receives responses, every Blessed Oath he makes bound by a god, we suspected he is not the first, nor the only. No, we believe the gods have been ensuring that it has been kept secret while binding the oaths of others as well."

Yet now, they are allowing it to be revealed. Why? What changed to cause the gods to decide that it is okay for people to know they haven't abandoned us?

Also, why didn't they let me learn that they were seen as having abandoned us? I find it really weird that I never learned that until Na'Maerul brought it up. Even if I lived on the streets of the slums my entire life, that doesn't mean I didn't learn things.

I also want to know why they didn't let me learn their names, beyond Zanoralv's, and what he was actually a god of. He let me spend six years thinking he was a god of oaths, and he's the God of Magic. If we ever meet, we're having some serious words about that.

"This confirmation," Lord Benjamin says. "Concludes our investigation. I'll inform Father of what happened. Thank you for helping us, Max. Are you planning on going out and training today?"

"I was planning on looking into a place to live," I answer. "Thomas told me after I left the guild last night that I have all the rights of an adult since I have a Title, and I want a house. Also gonna make a guild of my own."

Making my own guild might make selling loot a bit more difficult, but it also means that jobs can be petitioned to me directly. While I'm okay with Guild Master Trenton's guild, I don't want to be in a guild where I'm under others.

The kids also don't want to join a guild, but they might if I make it and then pass off leadership to Hailey once I leave on my adventures. As part of a guild, they can accept jobs without additional fees, and the guild being run by Hailey means they'll be more comfortable in it. Granting them that sort of gift will make it easier for me to come back and stay between adventures, too.

So it's definitely for selfish reasons, but I'm sure they'll understand once they realize what's going on. They'd do the same thing if they were in my boots, I'm sure of it. Though none of them have boots.

We should fix that.

"Good luck," Lord Benjamin tells me. "I'll be seeing you."

He leaves, taking the guards with him. Once they're out of sight, Hailey approaches me, looking hesitant.

"Here," I hand her a coin. "Buy yourself and your kids some new clothes, and get all of ya somethin' to eat. Meet me here at nine-thirty."

"Max?" Hailey asks after glancing at the coin. "Did ya mean to give a silver one 'stead o' a gold one?"

"No," I answer. "Is a five-gold. Get some good clothes, make everyone feel pretty and make sure they eat 'til they almost puke. But not 'nough to puke. I's gonna find a place for all of us. Would ya take care of it while I's adventuring?"

"Yeah," Hailey answers without hesitation. "We owe ya too much, Max. We'll make sure it's safe. Five-gold's too much, though."

"Not too much," I shake my head. "Ya need it to get good clothes. And a change or two o' 'em. And a little extra for food. If ya are takin' care o' my place, then ya ain't gonna be scraping together coppers for whatever meals ya can get while still savin' some up. That five gold's gotta last ya until ya can afford stuff."

They're going to work hard to make sure they 'earn' that five gold, I can see it in the eyes of the older kids. No debt unpaid, that's the rule of the slums. Building up additional debt from them so that they feel they have to keep doing stuff isn't really my intent here, and I think Hailey realizes that after a few moments.

Both of the things I've already done for them are things they will feel unable to repay easily. I gave them an easy repayment on the first, and I promised Hailey that doing that was my only intent. It really was, too. It's other stuff that I'm doing.

For example, by providing a good house for them long before they can afford it, they'll view it as my house, just with them watching it and keeping it clean. That's why they'll let me stay at 'their' house when I return between adventures.

Saving them was mostly because they can't uphold their end of the deal we have if they're kidnapped or dead. Also because I felt obligated to do so, since they only started learning magic because of me. I made that clear to them last night.

"What do ya want in return?" Hailey asks.

"Nothin'," I answer.

"I don't believe ya," she states.

"It's my fault you were all kidnapped," I say, making sure to speak better than we have been. "If I didn't teach you how to use magic, you wouldn't have been targeted. I saved you because it was my fault, but I didn't repay causing the incident. Giving you enough that all of you can get some good food and some clothes to feel pretty in is my attempt at apologizing."

"Okay," Hailey nods. "I can accept that. But we ain't gonna have spots to put the clothes, so-"

"About that," I say. "I plan on buying a place to stay, as I stated. But I's also planning on going on adventures. That means the house'll be empty for long periods of time. I want someone to keep an eye on it, keep it clean."

"Ya're askin' if I will?"

"Not just ya," I tell her. "The crew can stay as well. Hopin' to have the house this mornin'. If I manage, then ya will have a place to put your new clothes today."

Hailey pulls her crew away and talks with them in hushed voices. I contemplate using [Ears of Wind] to listen, but decide against it. A few minutes later, Hailey walks back over to me.

"And that's all ya want us to do?" Hailey asks. "Take care o' the house for ya while ya are gone?"

Hailey knows that I'm offering a trade here. They take care of my house, they get to stay in it. She also knows that even if we don't trust each other, we know that this deal will be upheld by both parties.

They know that pissing me off by betraying the agreement would only end badly for them, so I know they won't betray me. They also know that I prefer to uphold good deals than to betray them. Or at least, Hailey does, and she'll have convinced the group of it.

She probably has issues with the fact that the deal is more fair, but she'll do it for the kids, especially with something else I'm going to tell them.

"And while I's here, if ya want," I nod. "We all get a place to live, and all ya and your crew have to do is take care of it for me. Some o' the really expensive houses have really good enchantments protectin' 'em, too. I's planning on seeing 'bout getting those put on."

Also into researching enchantments so that I can add my own barriers and security. A place with security enchantments will make the kids feel more safe.

"Okay," Hailey says. "Then we agree to that deal."

"Great," I say. "And in light of what happened last night, I'll let ya have some more time to find out stuff 'bout wonders. Speaking agreements between ya and me, Hailey, why don't we end this one?"

I hold up my left thumb. I didn't lie when I said Hailey and I didn't do a Blessed Oath regarding the agreement about me helping them learn magic and them looking for stories of wonders for me. I never told them that this Blessed Oath wasn't with Hailey.

"Ain't 'por'ant an'more," she shrugs. "Yeah, I's agree to that."

Your Blessed Oath with Hailey has been canceled by mutual agreement.

"Don't think I ain't got my eye on ya, though," I tell Hailey.

"I know," she says. "And Max? Thanks."