“Are they not meant to stay here for a few days?” Tonagek asked, who had been assigned to the Front Iyr for the latter half of the year.

“Would you have me deny your nephew the chance of regaling such a great tale to his mother?” Lykan asked, sitting beside the Iyrman, atop the roof of a building.

Tonagek stared at Lykan, narrowing his eyes. “I would never.”

“Why are you staying up here so shyly?” Lykan chuckled. “You should have said hello to them.”

“That boy, the Half Elf…”

“Your dear nephew?”

“Not my dear nephew,” Tonagek grumbled. “I do not know what my sister was thinking, but I do not trust him.”

“It is not a matter of trusting him, but a matter of trusting young Jurot,” Lykan said. “You trust him at least, don’t you?”

Tonagek grumbled affirmatively.

“Besides, they say he has already began to change the Iyr,” Lykan said, looking out to the distance puthral he could barely see.

“They will blame you when it goes wrong.”

“And I will accept the blame,” Lykan said. “Though, what has he done wrong so far?”

“Nothing, but it is not what he’s done so far, but what he will do in the future.”

“You are just angry because you were unable to kill Vandra back then.”

“I am not angry,” Tonagek grumbled again, crossing his arms. “I am annoyed. Vandra should have been mine!” He recalled how he had failed to hunt Vandra all those years ago, back when he had been active in the Southern Isles.

Lykan smiled at the Iyrman. “Are you going to do it?”

“I may.”

“I can ask for your early dismissal,” Lykan offered.

“No.” Tonagek shook his head. “I will do my duty, and if I wish to go out and have fun, it will be only after I have completed my task here.”

Lykan smiled.

Adam hummed as they made their way back to the Iyr.

Jonn and Dunes dared to glance around.

“What’s the matter?” Adam asked.

“We are being watched,” Jonn said.

“Uhuh,” Adam said. “What about it?”

“It is unnerving.”

“Leave the Iyrmen be,” Adam said. “Don’t try to spot them. The less you know about the Iyr, the better.”

It wasn’t long until they saw the gates of the Iyr, flanked by those statues.

“By the Gods,” Brittany said, fluttering her lashes up at the huge walls. She hadn’t expected the Iyr to have another set of walls which made her feel so unimportant.

Jurot shouted up, and soon the gates opened, causing all manner of children to swarm them once they stepped inside.

They saw Jurot, who stood tall with his Iron Tag, but even though he wasn’t highly ranked, they still leapt up excitedly, shouting at the group for gifts.

“Settle down,” Adam said, holding up his hands. “We’ve brought plenty of gifts for you all!”

“Gifts!” the children cheered.

“So that’s why you are so insistent on carrying another pack,” Dunes said.

Adam pulled out the second pack which he had strapped under his main pack, opening it up to reveal all manner of cloth strips for the children, who tried to snatch at them.

“Form a line!” Adam shouted, raising up the cloth strips. “Only the good boys and girls of the Iyr will receive some cloth.”

Quickly, the children slipped together to form a line, almost a hundred children coming together.

“Are you sure you have enough?” an Iyrman asked from the side.

“I didn’t spend all this gold to not bring enough,” Adam said, handing out a strip of cloth to each child as they came.

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Unfortunately for him, another hundred Iyrchildren had joined the line from nearby.

Fortunately for him, he had spent too much money on souvenirs, and he had more than enough cloth to go around.

The Iyrman from the side threw a look to Jurot and the rest, who shrugged at the Iyrman.

Adam smirked at the Iyrman from the side. “Don’t underestimate my stupidity.” The Half Elf puffed out his chest and marched forward, heading towards the shared family estate.

The Iyrman from the side threw another look to Jurot and the rest, who shrugged at the Iyrman.

“We do not dare say we understand his mind,” Jurot said.

“He’s queer,” Jaygak said.

Kitool nodded.

Adam stopped once he saw the entrance to the courtyard and he looked to Jurot. “Go on,” Adam said, motioning a hand.

“Why must I step first?”

“Aren’t you most excited to see your mother?” Adam asked.

Jurot inhaled deeply for a moment, but nodded. He couldn’t lie, for he was an Iyrman, and so he marched forward.

There he found the children of the various families drawing on the wet floor. Citool was sitting nearby the children, keeping an eye on them.

His mother was also there, currently knitting something, with Lanarot sitting down beside her on a blanket, leaning against the chair as she played with a ribbon stuck to her arm.

Sonarot’s eyes met Jurot’s, and they lit up. “You’re back,” she said, quickly standing up. She rushed up to her son and embraced him tight, kissing his forehead and hugging him.

“I have returned, mother,” Jurot said, letting her smother him in affection, his lips curled into a smile.

Kitool rushed up to her mother and embraced her tight too, holding her close as they chattered in their tongue.

However, the two women were also keenly aware of the strangers they hadn’t seen before nearby, though there were already other Iyrmen keeping an eye on them.

“Jurot, my Jurot,” Sonarot said, brushing his cheek tenderly, staring into his eyes.

“Mother,” Jurot smiled wide, and unable to contain himself, he blurted out, “I slew a Dragon.”

Sonarot stopped brushing his cheek and then tilted her head slightly, her eyes wide and her brows raised in surprise. “Oh?” She wasn’t sure if she had heard him correctly.

“Adam slew two.”

“What?” she asked, unable to comprehend what her son was saying. ‘Two Dragons?’

Adam smiled, crossing his arms together. He didn’t care that he had slain two Dragons, he was just glad that he had managed to bring Jurot home safe and sound, as he had promised.

“So many tales to tell us,” Sonarot said, before she motioned for Adam with a hand. “Come.”

Adam walked over towards her, already feeling a little embarrassed.

Sonarot kissed his forehead and hugged him tight. “You’ve come home safely,” she said, petting his head.

“Yeah,” Adam said, feeling a little awkward as he stood there in her arms.

Sonarot eventually let him go, and Adam’s eyes fell right to Lanarot, who scooted her bottom towards her mother.

“Oh my gosh,” the Half Elf said. “Jurot, are you seeing this?”

“Yes?”

“Before we left, she couldn’t even sit by herself, and now she’s scooting all by herself!” Adam’s heart was full of pride. “So cute!”

Sonarot picked her up and Lanarot rested her head against her mother’s chest for a moment before she pulled away to look at Adam and Jurot.

“Look at how big and strong you are now,” Adam said, reaching over to tickle her cheek with a finger. “I told you not to grow up too quickly, you bad girl. You’re so lucky you’re cute.”

“Lanarot, look,” Sonarot said, raising her daughter up to in front of Adam and Jurot, as though she were a little cub she was raising towards the sun. “Your brothers have returned home safely. You must remember their faces from now on.”

Lanarot stared up at the two, smiling at them both as she squirmed in her mother’s hands, kicking up her feet excitedly as she giggled.

“Ah, right,” Adam said, glancing back at the others. “We’ve invited a few of our companions. This is Jonn, a Guardian who I beat up and now he’s following me to see if I’m worthy to swear his Oaths to.”

Jonn blinked. ‘Could you not have introduced me some other way?’

“This is Brittany, who I promised to help if she became decent at archery,” Adam said, before leaning in and saying, not at all quietly, “between you and me, she’s still kinda bad.”

Brittany narrowed her eyes at him, but she was still too shy to say anything, full of awe at the Iyr.

“This is Dunes, a Priest of War,” Adam said, motioning a hand to him. “He thought I was gay.”

Sonarot stared at him. “You are not gay?”

Adam blinked. “No.”

Sonarot stared at him harder. “No?”

“No.”

“I see.”

“It’s a pleasure to meet you,” Dunes said, bowing his head. “I have heard so much about the Iyrmen, and it is my absolute honour to be a Guest of your family.”

Sonarot smiled. “It is our honour that a Priest of Wahtu has come to stay with us.”

“We’ve brought gifts,” Adam said. “Though, there seems to be a problem. I don’t see any of the kids about.”

The children, who had gone to meet their sisters, heard mention of gifts and then quickly circled around Adam, before they glanced between one another.

“We are here,” Katool said.

“Huh?” Adam said, looking down at the girl. “Who are you?”

Katool looked at Kitool, who wasn’t sure what Adam was doing, before looking back up at the Half Elf. “I’m Katool,” she said, a little shyly, bringing her hands together and squirming.

“You’re Katool?” Adam said. “You’re not Katool.”

Citool looked at Sonarot, who stared at the woman and shook her head. She wasn’t sure what he was doing either.

Katool stared up at him in shock, her eyes flashed back to Kitool, who stepped up towards the Half Elf.

“What are you doing?” Kitool asked.

“Kitool, this girl says she’s your little sister,” Adam said as Katool hid beside Kitool’s leg.

“She is my little sister,” Kitool said, firmly.

“No, no,” Adam said, keeping his voice light, and perhaps a little too dramatic. “Katool was so small and cute.” Adam narrowed his eyes at the girl. “This girl is too big and strong to be Katool.”

Katool’s nostrils flared as she held onto her sister’s leg. “I am Katool!”

“What? You’re Katool?” Adam gasped. “No way. Wait… where’s Raygak?”

“I’m right here,” the boy said.

Adam gasped again, staring at the Devilkin boy. “What? But… but you’re so big and strong too!”

“I am big and strong,” Raygak said, nodding his head confidently, his lips curled upwards into a chuffed smile.

Jaygak’s eyes were tearing up as she held onto her mouth, trying to stop herself from laughing.

Adam looked at all the children. “Oh my gosh. You’re all so big and strong, I didn’t recognise you.”

Sonarot looked at Lanarot, before shaking her head. ‘Now I understand why you don’t want to recognise him.’

“Bad,” Taygak said, pointing up at him.

“Bad?”

“Bad. Forget Raygak.”

“I’ll never forget you though, Taygak,” Adam said, smiling down at her.

“Help Jaygak?” she asked, her eyes narrowed suspiciously at him.

“Yes,” Adam said. “I did. Right, Jaygak?”

“Did you?” Jaygak asked, tapping her chin. “Did you help me?”

Adam stared at her. “Et tu, Jaygak?”