Things were not going according to plan. As I walked along the deserted corridors of the fourth floor in the Rost manor I pondered when exactly I had lost my edge. Back on earth I was capable of convincing priest to do drugs and nuns into believing if it was only once it didn’t count, and now a kid not even thirty yet was thwarting my every move.

The quest to have Lairden have a row with the rest of the delegates from Van Linterg was going badly and what made it extremely frustrating was the fact that all my efforts were being thwarted not by Angrod but by the person I was trying to recruit himself.

Lairden had proven to be not as helpless as everyone thought he was, but I suppose after been shuttled about every affiliated clan related to the Van Linterg household for most of his life he had developed a surprising knack for mitigation.

For the last five weeks Lairden had shown impressive conflict savvy as he managed to keep the Linterg delegation at bay but at great cost to his peace of mind, an individual of particular annoyance had been his younger sister, Riwen, who had taken great offense at how little I cared about her existence. Even though he had been extremely successful in avoiding a direct confrontation Lairden was a straw away from breaking and I had prepared a sledge hammer for the final blow, a sledge hammer I would hand to Angrod to use.

I came to a stop in front of a door I had visited frequently in the last five weeks and laid a palm on the wooden surface. Instantly a magical rune emerged casting me in a harsh red light before it flickered blue and allowed me access to the room beyond.

As I walked in I could see Mablung’s room was still as Spartan as ever, a bed, a wooden table and chair, a book shelf at the extreme corner and a standing suit of armor was all that decorated the room that Mablung called home, any effort on my part to gift him anything to spruce up the place only lead to awkward silence as he thought up more and more amusing excuses why he couldn’t accept my gifts.

The elf in question was currently sitting in the middle of a magic circle that spread across most of the room floor and a large number of glyph spun round him within the circle sucking in the energy in the very environment and rapidly converting it into battle essence.

Mablung had been in close door training to break into the pillar formation stage since before I had set out to investigate the besieged border town, the magic circle he currently sat within was something I had been working as far back as my ten year exile in the black sword castle, it was after all it was intended to assist my mother in braking into the realm domain.

Mablung sat cross legged, naked of any clothing apart from a loin cloth that covered his most private part. His skin was an angry red and his chest heaved in labored breaths as his jaw bone stood out in prominence as he gritted his teeth, with a sigh I was reminded why so few nobles went along the path of cultivation.

For battle essence wielders, the path of cultivation was smooth sailing until one reached the arduous task of forming their first pillar.

Through body tempering, pathway formation and core formation an individual could rely only on perseverance and resources to advance, but when it came time for pillar formation it was a whole other ball game.

The human body had a hundred and eight gates through which the energy of the universe could enter through, the orc race had seventy nine, and the dwarves had ninety two while the elves had a staggering two hundred.

While all the other races depended solely on the external energy to temper themselves and advance in the path of cultivation the elfin race could also produce energy internally. So not only did we live far longer than any other race we only required half the effort to advance twice as far as them, I had never seen a more broken system in my two lives.

While the potential to open all two hundred gates lay within every elf the ability to do so was another matter, this depended on the talent of the elf in question.

Once the battle essence pathways had been formed the next step was to start congealing battle essence in as many gates as possible, the condensed battle essence took the form of a sphere or a core, hence the name, and depending on the ability of the elf in question it could range from anywhere between seventy to a hundred and thirty cores, the record being a hundred and fifty but that had been reported by the royal family and the entire elfish nation had agreed not to embarrass the royal family by exposing such an obvious lie, it was a pity I had not been alive at that point in time.

Once the cores were formed then came the first hurdle of battle essence cultivation, the fusion of the first pillar. Documentation of the process describes it as an extremely painful process which should not be done without supervision of some kind that was a lie.

The process was mind numbing, body braking and soul shaking en-devour and very few individuals walked away from it unscathed either emotionally or physically. This was the reason why most nobles opted out of the cultivation route and with magical energy more of luck of the draw thing it was extremely unlikely to see a noble with high cultivation.

The process could be made easier if a steady supply of high quality battle essence was readily available to the cultivator, this was where the magical sigil I had inscribed for Mablung came in hand. Its function was simple, to convert the natural energy of the world and contain it within the magical circle. Mablung had been within it all this time and was at a critical junction in the fusion of his cores.

I walked round the magic circle to make sure everything was in order before silently exiting the room and resealing the door. Even though the entire house knew that Mablung had gone into close door meditation they were not aware that it was to fuse his first core, that would have been problematic as he was my most staunch supporter within the house and would be seen as a larger threat for those who wished to oppose me.

I retraced my steps back to the fifth floor only to be intercepted halfway there by Galfin who I had been trying to avoid since I had returned to the mansion.

“Lord Tal, you cannot flee for ever sooner or later you have to deal with this issue” Galfin called out to me as soon as I turned into the pathway that lead to my chambers on the fifth floor. Apparently he had been waiting for awhile and the look of determination on his face showed he was willing to risk my wrath to deal with the issues that had been plaguing him.

When I had seen Galfin on my return to the Rost manor I had suspected that something was amiss, the suspicion had only grown when Hauser had reported the expenses we had to incur for the show of force at the Van Flotina stronghold and Galfin had barely twitched, since then I had steadfastly avoided Galfin at all cost being of the firm believe that ignorance was bliss but apparently it was all over.

I sighed to myself abandoning all thoughts of escape as Galfin hurriedly closed the distance between us, as if he was terrified I would suddenly change my mind and flee the scene.

“I have been trying to keep them at bay but the other clans are still clamoring about the fact that you let your birth date pass without celebration, but somehow they have received word that you plan not to celebrate the one year anniversary of your installation as head of the clan” he said furiously whispering the last part as if people would pop out of the wall and scream aha!

“even worse my lord news has reached from the Flotina house hold about your action and some of the guards with you have confirmed the story that you killed the head of the crimson merchant house, you all but confirmed that one when you aided our silver ship merchant clan and the blue curtain merchant house to acquire some of the falling houses assets” he continued rubbing the bridge of the nose as he closed his eyes.

I felt slight pity for Galfin but I still had no regrets for what I did, in fact I wished I had made it the method I use to slay Fadneth Tur and his son were even flashier because in the last five weeks all the back door attacks and covert operations ran by the house and clans both affiliated and non affiliated had suddenly vanished.

A child not yet seen his second decade had killed an early stage pillar formation cultivation, a child who until very recently had been thought unable to cultivate had sent shock waves across both the new lands and the capital territory. Letters I received had suddenly contained much more politeness and respect, the head of the various clans affiliated to the Rost house were suddenly more respectful in their whining and the second war minister had gone suspiciously quite, though I suspect that had more to do with the three general level opponents I had escaped from more than anything else.

However the reason I had cancelled all the celebrations between now and the tournament was to give Mablung time to break into the pillar formation level without interruption, the house was already riddled with spies as it is but if I started letting high numbers of strange elves into the house borders a few more would definitely slip in.

It was also so that those willing to test my supposed strength would only have one opportunity to do so, the martial tournament.

I had thought I had a grasp on how badly the event had mutated but apparently I had been naïve. Covertly or openly, every faction of the elfish nation had sent some sort of representation to the occasion, either to watch the event, observe the stadium that I had built or just see the young lord that had caused the down fall of the crimson lotus merchant house. The actual participants were on a whole other level.

The three day event had stretched to a seven day event, not because we were trying to milk the occasion for all it was worth..........well not entirely because we were trying to milk the occasion for all it was worth but because of the sheer number and range of participants we had received application from.

It had gone from a win five bouts then enter the bracket system to steadily climb to the finals to four different tournaments in one.

There was the under ten tournament as many noble houses had sent their young masters and mistresses to gain experience or prestige while their attendants and aides snooped around Rost town ferreting out as much information as possible.

Then there was the under fifty which was still considered as children but these had cultivated for a sufficient enough time to have a firm foot in the door of the cultivation world and were able to display some techniques.

The under hundred was self explanatory, and finally the open tournament was allowed to everyone but they were to sign a death waver as it was the only tournament where killing was aloud even though frowned upon.

I had intended to ban killing of any kind in the tournament but the look of pity I had received from Felina, Galfin and Hauser in our planning sessions had brought me to a full stop. Throwing a group of powerful cultivators, some of which would have previous grudges between them, into a ring and telling them to have at it while expecting someone not to die was a bit naive.

But after all was said and then the reality that the tournament was not going to be as low profile as we thought it would be hit us when we had to step in and stop two noble clans from fighting when one had demanded that the other relinquish the high class inn they booked to them, when asked if they would settle for another I was informed only one high class in remained and most of the normal ones were almost full to the brim and this was a month before the main tournament itself when none of the official delegates of the major houses had arrived yet apart from Van Linterg.

After inviting the noble clan into my guest villa a little ways away from Rost town until we could sort out their accommodation problem, I summoned my now highly experienced construction squad and they began to build multiple high and standard inns while increasing the numbers of shops as well. This was the real reason the nobles of my house were mounting pressure on Galfin.

When representatives of the Van Rost affiliated clans had gone to inquire about purchasing land along the road leading up to the arena they had found out it was all owned by the house, already regretful that they hadn’t jumped in to the tournament plan from the onset, they had started angling to see me which I blatantly avoided hence they had no choice but to push for an event which I would have to be present for myself.

“What if you just gave them each a shop that wouldn’t be too bad” Galfin almost begged, he wasn’t stupid and had realized the real reason for the sudden affection my house leaders had for me.

“First and foremost I don’t want to and secondly we shouldn’t reward bad behavior. Inform them there would be a celebration at the end of the week where we would discuss how I would handle the distribution of the rights to the shops and inns for the tournament period” I conceded finally and immediately Galfin’s face bloomed like a Christmas light, I decided not to tell him that the decision I had come to would cause more problems than it would solve, let him have his brief moments of joy.

“use the same sitting arrangements we used at my coronation but consult with Felina about all the clans and houses that slighted me with their gifts last time and have them moved one position back, remember exactly one, I wish to make a subtle statement” I began instructing as I walked towards the sealed door leading to my chambers.

A look of embarrassment flashed across Galfin’s face. As my aid he should have been at my side pointing out the insults each house had sent in my direction that fateful evening, but the Loft clan had been more of a silent supporter back then still unsure of my ability to lead.

I lifted my hand to unseal my door, pausing slightly to see if Galfin needed anything more from me, with a sigh he bowed and departed allowing to enter my newly refurbished room.

The pet project that had been hijacked by the head of the silver ship merchant clan had finally been completed a week ago and I was impressed. When I had said I wanted an inside garden I was thinking a few bonsai trees and some grass here and there. Orchaldin the leader of the silver ship clan had gone in a different direction.

The entire floor of the football sized stadium was covered in soft green grass then leading away from the entrance was a stone path lined with wild roses and honey suckles, scattered intermittently throughout the chamber were red sakura trees and it all came to head in the middle where an ancient oak tree covered a wide training platform for my personal use.

Instead of partitions tiny brooks had been used to separate the various sections of the chambers with small red bridges placed in various locations to cross over, and no elfish bedroom would be complete without a freakishly large bad.

I had been blown away by it all, and with the spell I had enchanted into the ceiling of my chamber that reflected the scenery outside of the castle it seemed I was sleeping in the wild just without the annoying insects, or dangerous animals, and room service…….okay it was nothing like the wild but it was still breath taking.

Of course because of the unsupervised access they had to my chamber someone had tried to forcefully examine the spell I had enchanted on the roof and had triggered some of the multiple traps I had set for them and when that failed they had left a supervision rune in attempt to spy on me. I had swept the room from top to bottom destroying any spy spells I found and adding anti-scrying runes to all the glyphs I had already put in place.

As I moved through my personal wonderland a small head popped out of the bushes before Erthor’s small form dashed out to intercept me.

“lord Tal, my aunt says she needs your input on the clothes you will where for the tournament, and I think something is wrong with Raijin” the youth said as he bounced up and down in front of me. As the only person apart from me who could enter my chambers without my presence Erthor’s position in the eyes of the rest of the house had taken a splendid leap.

At the time I had simply intended to give my chambers a weak point I could supervise as the various parties that which to supervise all that went on within attempted to gain access rather than wait for them to finds a way I had yet to think of while I was busy with the tournament proceedings, I had never thought that the simple act would turn Erthor from a serf I had taken in as part of a deal into a young elf I was going to mentor personally.

The new status had made the desperate Vareyen see young Erthor as a heaven sent opportunity and she had immediately set out to befriend the boy, either due to inexperience or desperation she had instead terrified the young elf and he would hide out in my chambers until the coast was clear, or before now bribe Raijin to escort him to his destination.

The fact I had not seen Vareyen on my way here must mean she had fled when she saw Galfin; I made a mental note to strongly warn her to stay away from my serf.

“What do you mean something is wrong with Raijin?” I asked going back to the last bit of information that he had dropped.

“for the last few days he hasn’t really been moving about that much and all he does is sleep” Erthor started, so far he had described a normal day in the life of Raijin and I lifted an eyebrow to indicate that so far he had told me nothing that was worrisome. “And he hasn’t been eating” now that was worrisome.

“Where is he?” I asked scanning the area around me that I could see, for Raijin to willingly turn down food was indeed cause for concern, the big cat had acquired a taste for the finer things in life, even going so far as to become picky about the prey it hunted the few times we could break away from my hectic schedule to go hunting, once he had tuned up his nose at a deer who he had deemed did not have enough meat on it to satisfy him, the act had destroyed the last bit of respect I had for him as a wild beast.

“his on his branch” Erthor replied to me and darted off towards the ancient oak tree that stood over the clearing that was my training ground in the middle of my chambers.

The raised concrete platform ring was fifty meter in radius and was extremely durable, right beside it was a massive oak three that stretched to just below the ceiling of my chambers, the lowest branch of this three which was as wide as three of me lying side by side was located seven feet above the ring and was Raijin’s favorite napping spot.

As I approached the branch all the worry that had been building up in my chest instantly dissolved as I felt the magical energy in the air trembling at odd frequencies while it raced towards Raijin. It seemed he was trying to condense his beast core.

The thing that divided magical beast, either normal or war beast was the possession of beast cores. This was the medium through which the beast could channel their ability or their chosen element. When the beast reached full maturity and had consumed enough meat that contained high quantity of natural energy they would form their beast core in their head.

“Do not worry Erthor he is just forming his core, in a week or two he would be back to normal” I consoled the elf.

“Oh” the one word answer told me that the real reason Erthor had been anxious about Raijin’s refusal to move was because of the lurking Vareyen.

“Why don’t we go see your aunt so she can decide what to dress us in for the coming celebration” I suggested feeling bad for the drastic life style changes the young elf had been plunged into.

Over the last few weeks it had become apparent the difference in standards children of noble birth were held to compared to those of common birth. Form the age of three children from noble clans or houses were lectured in history, politics and various other topics their tutors hoped would prepare them for the covert battlefield that was the political world of the elfin kingdom in comparison unless a child of low birth found someone who was willing to take them as an apprentice they would usually end up following their father or mothers trade.

Since Erthor arrived in Rost manor to say he was welcomed with open arms would have been a blatant lie, the children of the affiliated clan currently staying at the castle had evaluated him and found him unworthy, often sending taunting remarks his way, at least that was the situation until I stepped in.

I stopped telling them tales and cut of all interaction with them leaving them to their own devices, but the pride of elves had already set in even though they were so young and there ring leader, the female elf who had initiated the telling of tales had rallied them together to isolate Erthor. Sadly for everyone involved Erthor could care less about the feud going on in his defense finding the fact that he was inside a mansion titillating by itself.

We soon exited the Rost manor and walked down the central street of town Rost. Soon it would no longer be logic to call it a town, the expansion within the last year had been on an almost alarming scale and even though we regulated the building of structure they had still sprung up like weeds.

“Greetings lord Tal” I turned to see Lairden waving from a distance, from the direction he was coming from it would seem he was returning from the inn the Van Linterg delegates had reserved for the tournament.

And the lion spots his prey, I thought to myself as I placed a smile on my face and halted my steps so that he could catch up with us.

“who is this lord I keep hearing about, I know my good friend Lairden would not call me lord especially after I have repeatedly asked him to call me by my name” I greeted him jovially as we clasped forearms.

“I thought that was while we were alone” Lairden asked as he laughed nervously in embarrassment, ignoring his words that would have been mistaken as a scandalous affair back in my first life I pulled him in step with Erthor and i.

“we are on our way to get something to wear for the martial tournament, and my house intends to have a feast at the end of this weak so ill need something for that as well, by the way I intend to have you seat beside me as the guest of honor at the feast” I threw out casually and even though he hid it well I could see Lairden’s face spasm as he tried to suppress his reaction and I let out a coy chuckle.

The more favor I showed Lairden only highlighted how completely I ignored the delegation from Van Linterg and they were taking their frustration out on the young master of their household, his younger sister Riwen had become particularly vicious of late. Use to be the center of attention because of being the only child that had the blood of both the ruling couple of the Van Linterg house the members of the house had bent over backwards for her, now this new lord wouldn’t even give her the time of day because, as she felt, of her half brother with the freakish eye.

“Is there any way you could give the members of my house a table in the inner hall” he asked sheepishly but his face immediately fell when he saw the scowl on my face. I had long since stopped hiding the dislike I felt towards the Van Linterg delegates from Lairden, at first it was because I was trying to curry favor as I convinced him to stay as a guest of my house, but as I had gotten to know more about the last child of the Linterg main branch my dislike had only grown more sincere.

“I will not pander to the needs of people who treat you so badly” I stated in a firm voice. The treatment of Lairden wasn’t just bad at the level of his affiliate clans, even the guards and help were brave enough to throw sneers and looks of disdain at him, something that I had never experienced at the lowest point in my elf life.

Very soon we arrived at Erthor’s aunt shop. The elfin tailor had not hesitated to make use of her nephew’s connection to the main family and was perhaps the only one more upset than the noble elves of my house at the few balls, galas and feast I had hosted so far, after all the more parties held the more gowns she sold.

“My lord” Erthor’s aunt, Tolin, bowed as I entered the shop along with her nephew and Lairden. The business savvy elf who had not found it problematic to establish herself in Town Rost, had quickly become the local tyrant of the fashion industry within the little town.

The capital trained elf had broken away from her master in order to establish a name for herself, her master however had not taken it well. Blacklisting her to all the noble clans, Tolin had no choice but to uproot her family and move to the new lands were her masters reach wasn’t as influential.

The store wasn’t at the level of the mega brands of earth but compared to the others available it had caught the attention of the nobles of the Rost territory some even having to book a week in advance before she could see them, it didn’t hurt that she was heavily endorsed by the current head of the house.

“Aunt Tolin the lord is going to have a feast at the end of the week” Erthor informed his aunt as he raced by me excitedly.

The polite smile, which had been on Tolin’s face, transformed into a full blown grin as her eyes flashed internally calculating how much money she could ring from the event.

“yes I intend to have two balls in the upcoming weeks, one will be this weekend which is exclusively for the house and its guest then we will have an opening ceremony feast before the beginning of the martial tournament, I would need gowns for the both of them” I stated in response to Tolin’s hopeful gaze after she heard her nephews statement.

“this way my lords this way” Tolin started with a creepy chuckle as she rubbed her two hands together in a maniacal fashion as she gestured for us to walk deeper into the store where different robes of various cuts and colors were hung on display.

“Will the young lord of the Linterg clan also be looking for an attire for this great occasion?” I cast a amused look Lairden’s way as the shrewd business female elf set her sights to conquer another young lord of a different house.

“Yes, if it won’t be too much trouble” Lairden replied politely and I could see Tolin, almost physically, in surprise. Nobility at all levels had an inherent disregards for those of low birth, for example, myself even though friendly approached the seamstress with a distant attitude allowing her to know that as long as she was honest in her dealings with me she was safe, but we were never polite to the point of subservience.

The young master of the Linterg house self respect and pride had taken such a battering that he had reverted to a default submissive attitude in hopes he did not ever offend anyone. Even though my facial expression remained stoic I felt a pang echo through my being, after all there was a point in my life where I also had to revert to such a demeanor.

After my mother had ‘relinquished custody of me to the state’ as my case worker like to state, and I had been placed by child protective services it had then hit me that I had been abandoned by mother.

It’s hard to go from she loves me no matter what to she doesn’t want me anymore, so it could be forgiven that I took some time to adjust. Fortunately the foster home I had been placed in had a buddy system where those more experienced in the system took the newbie’s under their wings for a brief period to orient them, my big brother had been Tray Willis.

The gospel of survival according to Tray was one which emphasized heavily on tough love and the fact nothing in life was free which he then went on to demonstrate by stating for his orientation class and continued protection I would be required to handover all my snacks, the fourteen year old street savvy African American soon proved to be worth every potato chip.

Tray’s true value to me however shone through long after we had transitioned from mentor and protégé to friend as couple after couple interviewed me and decided that I did not quite fit the vision they had for the child they wanted to adopt. No matter how politely and politically correctly you are told your being rejected a rejection was still a rejection and after a while you start making changes to yourself both subconsciously and consciously.

I began to smile at all times when I was in view of an adult, I once went a week with an inflamed rash on my thigh brought about by a vegan diet one couple I was staying with on a trial bases stuck to in fear that It would be the reason they passed on me. Slowly and systematically I sank into depression and by age ten I had started hiding in dark corners to cry not because I was embarrassed that others would see me crying, it was so that my perfect foster credentials would not be ruined.

It was Tray who had noticed me slipping and him that dragged me back, firmly indoctrinating me into the fuck them all school of life, it was also him who thought me to forgive but never forget.

=========================================================================================================

It was the day of the feast at last and the nobles had descended on the manor with a vengeance.

Gold and ivory reinforced carriages, silk and fur lined gowns, gem embedded ornamental weapons and jewelry on every available piece of exposed skin was the theme of the day as noble after noble arrived at the Van Rost manor, all that was left was a fashion icon to stand at the door asking the nobility who are you wearing.

I chuckled internally at my small joke as I observed it all from the second floor balcony, I had long since learnt that a feast wasn’t a celebratory event but simply other method elves used to fight.

“Are you sure this is fine lord Tal” Lairden’s voice drifted from behind me filled with uncertainty and trepidation for the upcoming night. Guest of honor at one event could be incidental but as Lairden was about to receive that same honor for the second event in a row everyone would soon know that the lord of Van Rost favored the second child of house Van Linterg.

“Our friendship isn’t a secret affair Lairden, I am not ashamed to count you amongst my confidants and would be most honored if you saw me in that light as well” I replied while turning to face the worried elf.

The difference in Lairden between when I stumbled across him in that sorry excuse for a camp and now was like heaven and earth, he was currently dressed in a midnight blue robe with diamond buttons all the way down the middle, his short hair was highlighted by a silver circlet he wore on his head and he no longer tried to slouch to avoid notice but stood tall and proud. The other day I had heard him put down one of his house guards that had been getting to mouthy and I had almost cried with pride.

At my words Lairden nearly glowed with pride and I chuckled internally at the proverbial straws I had been piling on the camel’s back patiently waiting for said camel to no longer tolerate been used as a floor mat by his clan.

“come friend Lairden, our guest are seated and have started feasting we should go before all the good stuff is gone” I stated good naturedly and led him out into the passageway where Erthor stood with a slight frown on his face.

“If you’re that worried about Raijin you can stay with him instead of going to the feast” I offered the little elf and instantly a constipated look crossed his face. He had watched the mana war beast become less and less responsive over the last few days spending more of its time asleep than anything else, Erthor had continued to worry over the lethargic cat despite my reassurances that it was only trying to form its core, however he had been looking forward to the feast since I granted him permission to attend.

“I will go with Lord Tal” the elf-ling finally replied and came over to my side. The difference between elf children of noble birth and common birth had been made apparent ever since Erthor came into my life, things I had taken for granted as the norm had left the elf starry eyed and speechless.

Not all elves start cultivation by the tender age of three years, that practice had taken root barely seven thousand years ago among the higher noble houses, with their resources and expertise they were able to mitigate the damage the early start would cause to the children.

Those of low birth usually didn’t start cultivation until they joined a merchant or mercenary clan or were taken in as a house guard by a clan who would then give them a low level cultivation method in exchange for anywhere between five to six hundred years of service.

The magical side of the coin was even worse some potential mages going up to a thousand years before they saved up enough money to seek the tutelage of an experience mage to guide their path. Other discrepancies existed in the level of education they received the nobility almost at the university level and the commoners barely qualified as an elementary school education, only expected to know the letters and simple additions and subtraction along with the common words used in their future profession.

Erthor had been an exception to the rule, because of his aunts exposure in the capital she had taught him more about the geography of the world and its various history with a slight dip in our elf history, to his dismay I immediately hired a tutor to rectify this and he spent a large chunk of his day learning what he had termed ‘fancy stuff’.

We walked together up the hall and descended down the stairs as one before the flustered faces of Galfin and Felina rushed into view.

“my lord there is grave news” Galfin began while Felina’s eyes darted between Lairden and Erthor I am sure pondering the wisdom of discussing house affairs with these present but to ask Lairden to excuse us would undermine the sense of trust I had been trying to build between us all this time.

“I have received news from Letharen, a ship from the capital has anchored of the coast bearing the royal seal” Galfin continued when he realized that I wasn’t going to ask the two elves with me for privacy.

I closed my eyes and inhaled deeply as I mentally readied myself for the next bout of hostilities that were going to occur. It seems the kid gloves were coming off and the royal family had come to deal with me personally.

=======================================================================================================

author: tried to add more structure to the power system of the world without revealing to much of what might happen in the future. the chapter was barely edited as well as it reached the limit of words i set for myself and i thought instead of holding unto it i would release it and immediately start on the next one.

ps: will put a brief description of the power system in authors rants this weekend.