Right away, i go meet the crown princess. Luckily she wasn't busy at the moment.

"So you're the kid i've heard so much about, how about making a saber for me?" Says the princess relaxedly while holding a tea cup.

"Lance Chevalier greets your highness." Although she's a princess, one shouldn't think of a girl in her early teens wearing one of those dresses with wide hips. She's around my mom's age (30s) and wears a suit that would be militaristic if not for the artistic decorations. She keeps her blonde hair braided in a way that makes it seem short. Altogether, her appearance could be described as handsome if not for her hourglass figure. "About the saber, maybe after this. For now, i'd like your help in choosing a couple of images for a set of two stained glass windows for the throne room."

She suddenly tenses up. "You mean big ones, right?" I nod. She stays silent for a while. "Tell me your plans." I do as she says. I plan to build a window for the front of the throne room and one for the back. As visitors enter the room they would see the one behind the throne and as they exit they would see the one above the entrance. I would also make chandeliers with strings of white diamond-looking glass that i would enchant to absorb light during the day and let out light during the night, that way the windows would illuminate the outside surroundings at night and be seen even from far away.

The princess, who by the way is called Catherine Sylvian IV, stays silent for a while once again before speaking. "Can you paint with oil on canvas?"

"I can, but i use magic so the texture differs from normal paintings."

"Show me one of your works then, i want to see your style." Style?

"Your highness, i don't have a singular style." That raises her eyebrow as she tilts her head in confusion. Well, it's better just to show her.

I use magic to make a picture of her similar to how she is now, sitting down while holding a teacup and with a flower garden behind her. I make the picture photorealistic at first and then switch between various styles, from the oldest to the newest but sticking to realistic styles and i stop from going more abstract than impressionism. I also sometimes mess with the mood of the picture by messing with the colors and lighting, making it darker and gloomier or brighter and cheerful or holy.

I also make it as if it's a stained glass window, with all the lines of dark metal holding the colorful but almost geometrically shaped glass.

The whole thing took about half an hour since i would sometimes struggle to remember or to decide the way i want to represent the style. I'm pretty sure i forgot or misrepresented a few, but whatever.

The princess stays silent while staring at the now empty wall for a couple minutes before calling a servant and asking them to bring plenty of canvas and paint. Goddamnit, she wants me to do it again doesn't she? "Do it again but on canvas this time." Fuck.

~~

For the next couple days, royal servants, various officers and knights witnessed the crown princess stomping around with a young boy of royal blood all around the castle and even to some public places.

Some rumors started of the princess having a secret child, but those were quickly shut down by the ones who recognized the boy's description as the Chevalier prodigy from the north and the fact that the princess was often seen in public and was never seen pregnant.

But the fact remained that the crown princess was going on outings with a cute young boy while she was still single and late for marriage. That was enough to start a different set rumors that were here to stay.

Soon after the redecoration of the throne room and the construction of the grand castle windows was done, the outings died down and the boy wasn't seen with the princess anymore. But that only made it seem as if the princess was reacting to the rumors, giving them credibility.

~~

"Sigh." Finally done, who would know that the crown princess was an art nerd? She even dragged me around to art establishments and noble houses to show me examples of things and had me paint and sculpt a variety of things for her.

I was starting to doubt whether we would make the windows at all, but we did.

The one behind the throne has the founder standing with a big smile while leaning on a great sword beside her, she's wearing armor and has a cape flowing in the wind. All around her are people from all walks of life kneeling. Above her is a circle with the profile of the royal castle in it.

The one above the entrance has the founder once again, this time leaping above the sea and about to bring down her sword on a megalodon while various ships and sea creatures watch.

Together with the windows are chandeliers with strings of diamonds (the princess bought actual diamonds instead of just using glass) that brighten the room during the night.

The princess even had the room de-enchanted so that i could sculpt the walls and pillars with various patterns, like vines and flowers or geometric patterns and symbols.

And who had to re-enchant the whole thing? ME! I was having none of that shit, so i made a big artifact that looks like half a circle of small crystal balls connected to a single big one that allowed me to control the mana of eight willing mages and enchanted the whole room as if it was a single object.

There, now not even an enchanted ballista can break through those windows, nevermind the walls. If you ever want to make a new entrance to this room, tough luck, none of my business.

And when i was finally done, the accursed princess wanted me to make banners and carpets for the place. FUCK NO! Was not what i said, i have the patience of a saint, i know. "Please forgive me, your highness. But i have to return to my training, i'm already late as of now." Yep, my free time ended two days ago.

I'm done with art for the foreseeable future. Even without this spy stuff, if the royal family doesn't make it up to me for the last week, i'll hold a grudge for the rest of my life.

I practically begged for Eleanor to take me to the next trip. This time we are going to a noble estate, i have to get in, break into a safe, copy a document, close the safe and get out, all without leaving discernible traces or being spotted.

The noble in question was informed of this exercise and rewarded for his cooperation.

Getting through the outer wall wasn't hard, both the wall and guards were prepared more in case of a large number of bandits, not a little kid sneaking in during the night.

Getting through the garden was really slow since i had to erase my footprints, that's until i learned how to move without leaving any by using magic.

I hide near the mansion and cast a spell to search for the safe. I find two, but i was told earlier that the one in the basement is not the one. So i climb the outside until the window closest to the safe and use another spell to analyze the nearby structures just to make sure this is the right room. It is.

I use raw magic to unlock and open the window. I make sure my shoes aren't dirty before i gently go in. The safe is behind a painting, just like every safe should be.

While i move towards the painting, my enhanced hearing notices footsteps going to this room's door.

I quickly hide inside a small cupboard (only possible because i'm a kid). But as it turns out, the footsteps just ignore this room and keep going. I let out a sigh with a mix of relief and irritation.

Then comes the slow process of de-enchanting and opening the safe without breaking it, but thankfully nothing interrupts me. I copy the document (just a bunch of numbers) and then comes the slow process of closing and re-enchanting the safe properly.

I make sure i displaced nothing noticeable before i get out through the window, climb down the side, sneak through the garden, and while i'm climbing out through the walls, a guard sneezes and my heart almost jumps out of my mouth. Good thing none of these guys are good with mana, or else they would have noticed my mana going slightly out of control.

I get out unnoticed and make my way to the meeting point with those two. I'm not sure why auntie came too, but maybe it was in case i was caught and they had to bail me out.

Eleanor said i took too much time, that if they had slightly better guards, i would have been noticed after that sneeze and that i relied too much on my small size, but i think she's just jealous of how easily i can hide.

It's one thing to sense the mana inside oneself, but to sense outside mana isn't easy to normal people. Anyone that can do that wouldn't be standing on the wall.

I'm pretty proud of succeeding on my first infiltration, but too much of it felt like a gamble. I had to gamble on the guards not looking my way, on no one opening the cupboard i hid in and on no one coming in during my safe-cracking.

Two out of three gambles are about me being spotted, so i know what i'm making next! A Camouflage Cloak! I don't know why i never made something like that before.

By the way, invisibility is a no go because it takes too much mana.

During the next break i started making it and remembered why i never made something like that before. Enchanting cloth is troublesome because a small tear can be enough to ruin the enchantment and giving it a durability enchantment that is good enough would leave too little 'space' for an enchantment as complex as camouflage. I want to experiment with making tougher cloth but i don't have enough time to get satisfying results.

I consulted with auntie and she mentioned some makers of gambesons (padded jacket used as cloth armor) and arming doublets (clothing wore under armor) would use alchemy to strengthen the cloth. What the-? I only learned how to make simple medicine and poisons from my alchemy books.

"Of course, silly. Why would the craftsmen just give away their secrets for the entire world to know?"

I just added corporate espionage to my to-do list.

I didn't want to do this, but i have no choice... I have to go into the royal library.

I approach the library while using everything i learned for the past year to stay hidden. The guard sees me, but i'm not hiding from him.

I enter the library and look around, no one here. I slowly look for a section on alchemy, found it! I slowly look for a book on cloth. "Can i help you?" "gyYAAAAAAH" I perform a manly warcry and do a tactical retreat.

When i look to the place i tactically retreated from, there's an old man there. "Did the king send you?" I ask, just to make sure.

"No, i work here." He says.

"How come you're so sneaky?" I was a little distracted, but my magic sense should have picked up on him.

"I learned over the years so as not to bother any visitors." Well, you sure bothered me! "Are you looking for any specific book?" Oh, right!

"I want to learn how to strengthen cloth using alchemy." He quietly thinks for a while before looking around him and taking a book from one of the higher shelves and handing it to me. "Oh, thanks, can i take this outside?"

"Yes, the queen has given permission for you." Oh, convenient.

I manage to make a working camouflage cloak by the end of the free time, but it's too shabby at the moment. The cloaking takes too long, the mana efficiency is bad and the mana circulation isn't smooth enough to be sneaky. The cherry on top is that, while the alchemic process did make the cloth stronger, it's not good enough to substitute an enchantment.

I'm starting to doubt whether this is really alchemy, so far it seems like just a poor man's excuse for chemistry. Where are the miraculous healing potions? Where are the tonics that make a man stronger and faster? I refuse to believe a fantasy world wouldn't have this kind of thing.

Oh well, at least i have a project to work on when i'm not training.

Instead of going on another trip, i practiced breaking into safes and doors without leaving a trace and also sparred with multiple people at once. The idea is to get me used to escaping a group of enemies surrounding me.

When i showed i could escape 30 soldiers, Eleanor started mixing knights in. I start having trouble past the 10 knights mark. Of course, they aren't anywhere close to royal knights, but they're still knights.

I also learned how to play dead like a pro, slowing down my heartbeat and all that good jazz.

Eleanor says that i should be able to start on mind magic in less than half a year.

"Now that you mention time, is it alright to take so long to get the investigation started?" I ask. "Aren't there kids disappearing?"

"The investigation has already started, silly. There are other people already working on it." Says auntie. "While there are kids disappearing, it isn't something like tens of them in one go. More like about three every year."

Now Eleanor speaks. "It's pointless to send you unprepared. If the investigation ends before you finish your training, so be it."

Oh well, if you say so.

~Time skip~

"A notice from the queen?" Asks a knight to his superior.

"Yes, it seems she will send a spy trainee to infiltrate the fort and steal that helmet." He points to a helmet on top of a low cupboard with a guard sitting on each of it's sides. "This will be a test to the spy and also for us."

"That's not very fair, is it?" Says the knight. "Not only does the spy need to get in here without being noticed, we already know what he is after." Oh boy, do i agree with this guy.

"Maybe the queen wants the spy to fail? Who knows what goes through the minds of royalty?" Answers the superior. My personal theory is that she wants to 'put me in my place', whatever that means. Good thing i have my camouflage cloak, now to make an illusion of the helmet while at the same time camouflaging and moving the real deal.

I think i'm developing a grudge against royalty.

After grabbing the helmet i go through the whole under a short table, get out through the door and then get outside through a side door of the fortress. Oops, seems they noticed the helmet was an illusion.

Then now it's just a matter of speed.

I quickly climb the outer walls and jump from the top while using most of my mana to lower the gravity on me.

~~

"Remember that your mission has nothing to do with fighting," Says Eleanor for the third time, "in case of danger you just need to run away."

"I get it, Eleanor, stop treating me like a kid."

"What are you saying?" Asks auntie. "You obviously are a kid."

"It doesn't mean you have to treat me like one!"

The door opens and the queen and king walk in.

"You're finally done with that part." Says the queen. "It shouldn't take long for you to learn mind magic, good luck." She says before she leaves. Okay?

"Well then, let's get started." Says the king. Geh, so my teacher is the king?

Can't i just get a book or something?