“I have such a nice, long block of wood,” Adam said, revealing another item from his leather satchel. “I wanted to make it into a staff, but I’m not really good at wood working, and I know Jurot’s busy.”

“I am not,” Jurot said.

“Jurot,” Adam whispered. “You’re busy, right?”

“No. I am not busy.”

“Jurot,” Adam said, raising his brows. “The twins babo are gone, so they’re going to need another positive role model to follow.”

“Grandmother can take that role.”

“Yeah, but Jarot needs a male role model too,” Adam stated, raising his brows further towards his brother.

“You are a good role model.”

“From the Rot family, I mean.”

“You are a member of this family,” Jurot stated.

Adam looked to his Aunt, before taking a moment. “Jarot needs a male role model from the Rot family, who is tattooed, so that he feels welcome by the family and well taken care of.”

Jurot inhaled deeply, ready to retort, but he could see that way his mother was looking at him, and then Jaygak’s expectant eyes. There was something he was missing for sure. “I may be busy…” Jurot finally said, glancing between everyone, still uncertain of what was going on.

“Oh dear, oh dear,” Adam said, looking to Saygak. “This wood can be made into such a nice staff for you, but we’re going to need to find someone to help with carving it.”

Saygak squirmed shyly under the sight of Adam’s gaze, before he looked over to his elder brother, Laygak, who was sitting right beside him, breaking apart a pepper for the boy. Laygak looked up at Adam with a half smile on his face, shaking his head lightly.

“I am sure my brother can find someone who can work the wood into a staff,” Laygak said, ruffling Saygak’s hair, before offering the boy a pepper.

Saygak bit it from his brother’s hand, eating the pepper with a small smile on his face. Taygak inhaled deeply, and pointed up at her elder brother, before stopping, looking to Adam. She narrowed her eyes at him, and then slowly nodded her head. She gave him a thumbs up, as he always did to her.

Adam smiled, returning the thumbs up, before Jaygak continued their stories, mentioning how they had met with the other Iyrmen, and then the stories began.

“I met some guy named Sir Gregory, I think it was?” Adam said. “Order of the Ice Blades. I fought him in combat, and I managed to beat him.”

The children stared up at Adam, waiting for more, but that was all he said.

“Don’t look at me like that!” Adam replied, frowning slightly. “He wasn’t even that good at fighting, so what am I meant to say?”

“He’s a member of an order,” Jaygak said. “He was decent.”

“Well he wasn’t anything compared to the other fights,” Adam stated.

Jaygak thought back to Adam’s opponents, and she smiled, nodding her head lightly. Her reaction caused the children to perk up from their disappointment. Adam went back to feeding his triplets from his hands, while she continued to speak of the fights, each Iyrmen describing their own fights.

“So there I was, rested and ready to fight,” Adam said. “I saw her, a woman adorned in a wall of steel, but it wasn’t steel, it was some kind of magical steel of sorts. I could see tiny black etchings across her armour.”

“Blade!” Taygak gasped, covering her mouth in shock.

“Blade,” Adam said, glancing up towards the sky as though he was trying to remember. “Yes. Yes, that sounds about right. Blade was her name.”

If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

“Oooh!” The children clapped their hands excitedly.

“I had no idea she was so strong,” Adam said, nodding his head. “We fought, and she killed me, so I wasn’t able to return back to the Iyr to give my children their presents.”

“Daddy!” Konarot pointed up towards him, her lips quivering as she pouted up at him.

“It was just a joke, baby,” Adam cooed quietly towards her, picking her up to kiss her forehead. He nuzzled against her nose, brushing her cheek tenderly. “Okay, no more jokes. Daddy will try to be good.”

Konarot continued to pout up at him, her lips still quivering. She grabbed his shirt tight and hugged him close.

“Tough crowd,” Adam said, clearing his throat. “Anyway, there she was. She had no blade that I saw, but as she prepared against me, she summoned her blade. It was such a wicked technique, a blade which appeared from nothingness. The battle began, and we clashed together. It was like a dance of steel, my axe, Wraith, meeting Blade’s blade. She was so strong and tough, I wasn’t able to managed a decent blow, but she dropped her blade, and swung nothingness towards me, and though it was imaginary at first, it appeared right within her hands and she struck me, almost felling me!”

The children gasped, Lanarot sticking more bread into her mouth as she watched, shocked. She wasn’t sure exactly what Adam was saying, but she understood it was crazy, since it was her papa.

“Me, Cousin Adam, the strongest, almost falling to Blade?” Adam whispered, also in shock. “But, I could hear how much Jaygak would bully me if I fell, so I grabbed my axe in hand, and we went back to battle. This time I was focused, my mind trained by battling so many Iyrmen and hydras.” Adam reached up to his head, narrowing his eyes. “My axe had been honed by the time I spent with the greatest warriors in all the land, so how could I are to lose to the likes of someone named Blade. I’m a member of the Rot family, you know? If someone’s going to beat me, it has to be with an axe!”

Turot nodded his head, understanding the logic behind his words, whereas Taygak pointed at Adam, and then looked to his mother, looking to her for support.

“So even though she could drop her blade and summon it, we fought again, but this time, my axe caught a chink within her armour, and I used the greatest smite I could muster. I brought down divine magic, but… she stood. What a terrifying foe! I had used my axe with all the strength I could muster with my divine magic, but she still was ready to tear me apart!” Horror flashed across Adam’s face, and he reached up to pretend to rub his invisible sweat. “What a scary woman!”

“Oooh!” the children confirmed.

“What could I do?” Adam whispered, shifting his body from side to side. “I managed to defend myself against her onslaught, and as she forced me on the back foot, I thought back to the times I lost. This time, though, I had Wraith and Strong Shield.” Adam raised his crimson shield. “Without them, I certainly would have fallen already! But! She was no Iyrman! She was no Lord of such and such! She was Blade! If I was going to lose, you need to be at least an Iyrman or a Lord of something!” Adam complained, huffing quietly. “I won’t lose unless you’re actually super strong!”

Konarot reached up with a sliced cucumber, offering it to her father. Adam leaned in to bite it, before continuing the story. “So,” Adam said, chewing quickly before swallowing, “I focused my mind again. Bam! Crash! Cha! My axe met Blade’s blade, and then I spun to the side, burying my axe into the gap between her armour. Fwa! Cha! I struck her in the side and she fell to a knee, beaten!”

“Ooooh!”

“But then, right as I beat Blade, I had to face an even greater foe!” Adam stated, sitting up straighter as he stared down at the children with a deep seriousness. “I was escorted to the arena owner, a Devilkin woman by the name of… Layla? I took off my axe and shield and placed it to the side, and she checked to see whether I was lying about my age. Lying, me? Adam? Adam the Honest? I might joke sometimes, but I do not lie!”

The children nodded their heads, mumbling between themselves in agreement. Katool wanted to speak up, but realised every time Adam had lied, it was for a joke. Is that still not lying, though? She narrowed her eyes.

“So she had a spell cast on me to speak only the truth.”

“Zone!” Taygak said.

“That’s right, Zone of Truth,” Adam confirmed. “She threatened me with a poison, Widow’s Tears. Apparently, a very powerful poison, something that can kill people quickly.” Adam looked to Sonarot. “An easy way to go.” He winked, before smiling at the others. “Then she paid me my bet and let me go. It wasn’t the last time I’d be speaking with her, I assure you.” Adam chuckled.

“Cousin Adam, strong!” Taygak stated, pointing up at the young man.

“Ho? I’m strong? Just you wait until you hear the rest of the story…”

The Iyrmen each spoke of their own fights, and how well they had fought, as well as how well Timojin and Amokan had also fought. As Jaygak mentioned her fight with Kitool, her father placed a hand on her shoulder, squeezing it reassuringly.

“Good fight,” Taygak said, patting Jaygak’s thigh.

“Yes,” Raygak confirmed. “My sister is strong too!”

“Kitool, is scary,” Adam confirmed. “I’d rather face anyone else but Kitool.”

Katool looked up to her sister, her cheeky little grin pointed up towards her sister. “Yes.”

“Who is that?” Adam said, staring at the young Katool.

“I am Katool,” she replied, smiling wide at Adam’s joke, before realising it wasn’t her birthday.

“What happened to your hair, Katool?” Adam asked. “It’s so long!”

“Yes!” Katool shook her head and let her hair bounce. “It is nice.”

“Hmmm,” Adam slowly nodded his head. “When you’re right, you’re right.”

They continued the tale, with the others not realising what was to come.