Kinsey was working on a convergence potion when Willem and Anna emerged from the study room. The first noticeable thing was that Anna came out of the study room completely nude, but it did not seem to bother her at all. The next noticeable thing about the two was the same expression they wore on their faces, and the similar walking pace as they left the room. The assimilation of Willem and Anna left them of one mind, meaning that even subconsciously the latter would begin to portray the former. Kinsey bowed to Willem while manipulating the fire of the burner, and then finished crafting the potion. Once it was completed, she went and made some tea for everyone. The time was nearing supper, and Kinsey was about to go start preparing food when Willem stopped her.

"We are going to the Bastion of Hope. Make the necessary arrangements." Willem said while grabbing a stack of papyrus from his desk.

"Yes, Master." Kinsey and Anna said in unison.

Kinsey went to prepare the clothes Willem usually wore, while Anna went with her to find some clothes to wear. When they emerged from the dressing hall, Kinsey was wearing her usual alluring red dress, and Anna donned a black gown. The gown was borrowed from Kinsey's wardrobe and was in dire need of adjustment, especially when it came to her upper body. The chest of the dress flowed openly instead of being compressed by mounds of flesh as it should have been. Anna used a strand of black tendril from her new darkness magic, binding it to the clothing to tighten around her body. The black tendril hid exceptionally well against the black of the dress, and it looked like nothing was amiss to the average eye.

Willem removed his clothes and wore the outfit Kinsey had prepared for him. Though the material itself was of high quality fiber, the earthly tones gave an air of humility and serenity. This little fact helped to keep his presence hidden compared to the two beautiful women by his side.

"May I ask where we are going, Master?" Kinsey had just finished putting on her boots and was preparing her satchel.

"There is a smithy in the outer ring we will be going to." Willem answered back.

"A smithy? Does my previous suggestion displease you?" Kinsey was a bit dismayed, usually Willem was open about his disapproval of something.

"Not in the slightest, I am paying my respects to someone dear to me." Willem was still stoic and straight forward with his answer, same as he had always been before.

This was a relief to Kinsey, as she thought she had angered him in some way. Seeing that he did not change after whatever occurred in the study room gave her a renewed vigor, and she went through the teleportation array prematurely to prepare the carriage after bowing to her Master.

As soon as Kinsey left, Anna spoke within her mind. "Master, we are of one mind, how can I not see where we are going... You do not need to go see them."

"You know why we must, I do not need distractions in the back of my mind when the time comes." Willem retorted.

Anna knew all too well what Willem had meant. Everyday she thought about her family and how they were doing since she left, and now that concern lingered in Willem's mind as well.

Willem went ahead of Anna who was still preparing, and teleported to the house in the Bastion of Hope. Behind him a few moments later appeared Anna carrying a small satchel. The satchel jingled slightly as her hips swayed, making the servants look her way momentarily instead of rushing to do their job.

One of the horse groomers tripped over a pail of water, spilling it into the street. The other older horse groomer smacked him on the head with a brush and did his best to clean up the mess. The horses had been briefly startled by the noise but calmed down with some coaxing by the time Willem approached.

Kinsey entered the carriage, followed by Willem then Anna. The door closed and the driver drove the reins, leading the horse into the bustle of the streets. The trip took a little time, as Kinsey was prone to sightseeing out the small window instead of properly leading the coachman. After she had her fill, Willem gave the directions according to Anna's memories.

A short time passed and the carriage finally ended up on the outer ring of the town, in an area often regarded as the slums.

The entire reason the outer ring was regarded to as the slums was purely because of the One True King. The further one was from his protection, the more likely one would be to die. The One True King was publicly recognized as the strongest of the human beings, and the closer one was to the King's palace the safer they would be. The outer ring of the Bastion of Hope was still within city limits, but there were many hidden dangers. Brigands often hung around the outer area, stealing from those too poor to be stolen from. The guard force did not bother with the outer ring, instead leaving the occupants to suffer.

Many of the workers had gathered around the carriage to see exactly why a fancy nobleman would come out so far from the inner area. The driver opened the door of the stagecoach and Kinsey was the first to leave the vessel. When she emerged, she offered her hand and a slight bow, and a long slender arm took hers. Anna removed herself from the vessel, taking care not to dirty her sequin dress. Many of the locals recognized Anna as the girl whom had become a mage and left the poverty of the outer ring, as she had become a local inspiration. Though to see her now, she was infinitely more beautiful than she was when she left for the Magic Academy not that long ago.

Finally, Willem took Kinsey's hand and left the stagecoach. He looked around at the locals, then up at the sun. The locals felt uplifted viewing the young noble who wore such earthly garb. Though young, just his presence inspired the workers to do better while he was around. He quietly walked forward, and knocked on the door with minimal force. Each knock was gentle, but had echoed out, leaving the locals perplexed.

Anna stood beside Kinsey, three steps behind Willem, both with their heads down in respect. After a few seconds had passed, the door opened and an older woman answered out while holding back three miscreants.

"Yes? How can I- ... Awa-wa-wa..." The first thing she saw was a young man of eighteen, and the stagecoach in the background behind him. She attempted to stutter out more words, but found herself at a loss as to what to say. From her line of sight, she could only see Willem and Kinsey, but not Anna.

"Mom, who is it!"

"I wanna see, I wanna see!"

"Mom...Hungry!"

The chirping of young children could be heard from behind as she jostled to keep the door open. Suddenly a ruckus could be heard, as if something had fallen over another, and the door slammed tight in the face of Willem.

A stunned silence fell over the gathered crowd as they had no idea how this noble would react to having the door slammed in his face. They all held their breath, not daring to utter a single word for fear of repercussion. Three swats could be heard from the other side of the door, followed by beseeched moaning of reprieve.

A few seconds later, the older woman again opened the door, a wooden ladle firmly grasped in her hand. She smiled politely with her mouth, but her eyes radiated an imploring of understanding.

"We have business here, may we enter." Willem remained unfazed from the events, and politely asked while slightly bowing.

"Of course, esteemed guests will always be welcome." The older woman smiled widely while opening the door, and the three went inside.

The house was rather small for the area it was in, roughly a quarter the size of a normal house within the inner city. The house was much different in the fact that it was not crammed closely to another, but was surrounded by large plots of land being used for agriculture.

The inside of the house was a mess, to say the least. The living area was covered in packed dirt, with just enough room for four wooden chairs and a small wooden table. A small coal-burning fireplace adorned the middle of the right wall of the house, which kept the place warm in the winter. The house had all the necessities, such as pots and pans, a stove and a dry storage. There was no cutlery to speak of, nor plates without cracks. The walls were covered in pelts of slain beasts, most likely payment to the smith for shoddily crafted weapons. The second floor had four cots, lined up side by side. The linen covering the bed was rough and scratched, but it was the most they could afford without more means. This was how the Atlee family survived day by day.

Three children quietly sat on their hands on the ground, with a single tear slowly falling down their face. Welts could be seen blossoming from their small arms as a punishment for their behavior.

Their faces were sullen, but nothing could hide the spark in their eyes when they saw the noble before them. After all, it was what they all aspired to be. Someone who could live beyond their means, with no fear of running out of food or being stolen from. Previously, all the nobles they perchance looked upon were fat, gluttonous men and women who gorged themselves on food while others watched. This noble at their door was different, to the point where they doubted if he was a noble at all. If not for their mother saying he was, they would have never believed him to be. His small stomach, straight stature and dressed down clothes made him look like every other worker from the inner city.

The older woman rushed to the kitchen and began to shakily prepare tea for her guests. She realized she had no tea leaves left, and looked on horrified at the empty satchel as if she had just been stabbed in the chest. She kept her head down when she emerged from the kitchen.

Without saying a word, Willem snapped his fingers and Kinsey produced a bag of tea leaves from her satchel. Kinsey handed the satchel to Willem, who then handed it to the woman. She graciously accepted the satchel and began to prepare the tea. While she was on the other side of the wall, she finally attempted to speak about what had been on her mind.

"Pray tell, what business do you have with my family? Anything you ask of us, we will do to the best of our ability. If you are in need of weapons, my husband is the finest craftsman in the outer ring, of that I can assure you. Though I am but a humble farm hand, if you wish for me to work upon your farms, I would be forever grateful for the opportunity. Even our children have become very good at different practices like sewing and hemming or garden work-..." The nervous older woman was beginning to ramble, and she finally emerged with a tray holding four cups of tea. She abruptly stopped when she saw what awaited her in the living room.

Willem moved to the side, and Anna became visible to everyone in the small house. It was as if time had stopped for the small family, as the gentle older sister had finally returned to see her family after going to the Magic Academy. The older woman gently cried as she went to embrace her daughter. The small tray carrying four cracked glasses of tea fell to the floor. The children all got up off the ground and hugged their sister with dirty hands. The black dress was suddenly covered in small brown hand-prints.

"I have come home..."