Kilniara stiffened then immediately stood, incredibly nervous even as she vibrated in place. The boys to the side began to stir and Kilniara stared at him in nervous fear. Joe quickly stood up and grasped this spear even as he took the blanket and handed it to Kilniara. He snapped the popup away, out of sight so as to not distract him while Kilniara stared at him in worried concern. The concern faded when he pointed to the corner of the room and she quickly relaxed as she scampered to it quickly. She lifted the blanket up in confusion but he just waved her question away, letting her know it didn’t matter. He’d given it to her as whatever weak form of protection it might offer, possibly to blind or tangle an assailant.

Just as he got to the door, another soft knock tapped on the door and he came to the side, placing the door handle in his left hand and spear in his right. He had the door against his left shoulder so he could control it and use it if needed as a shield and control the opening into the room.

“Who is it?”

“Ah! Joe. Thank goodness. I thought I got the wrong room. It’s me, Gwenvair. Mot… the Matriarch is waiting.”

Joe blinked at that and then quickly opened the door, “Oh… Sorry. Did I sleep too long? We’ll be down soon.”

Gwenvair smiled when he opened the door, then froze, blinking even as her gaze snapped down to his chest for a bit and froze there. Joe froze himself, growing a bit uncomfortable while also trying to be polite to Gwenvair. He tried to figure out a way he could catch her attention without embarrassment then finally decided to pretend he was oblivious.

“So we can meet you down in the common room? I’ll dress quickly and tell the others to get ready.”

Gwenvair snapped her eyes back up to Joe and nodded, also ignoring the situation, “Yes. We will await for you there.”

Joe was surprised at that and blurted out, “Your mom’s here?”

Gwenvair relaxed at that, even grinning, “No. She is at the wall.”

Joe sobered and nodded, “I’ll be right there. The others will probably be a bit slower.”

Gwenvair nodded and turned away while Joe closed the door. His tension had mostly faded, but completely evaporated when the door closed and turned to look at Kilniara. She smiled, then began giggling softly and Joe shook his head.

“Ha. Ha. Very funny. We don’t have time. Let’s get going quickly.”

Kilniara nodded, “I’ll go get ready.”

Joe snorted, “I’ll get the two boys up.”

Kilniara chuckled and slipped out of the room as Joe turned to the two boys and quickly woke them up. They resisted but Joe’s insistence and the mention of the Matriarch and Gwenvair had them up quickly, almost before Joe himself was heading out the door.

Joe made it downstairs to find Gwenvair waiting, seated at a table, and Joe paused a bit, wondering. He came to stand in front of the table but she didn’t stand, so he sat with her at the table.

“Good morning.”

“Good morning, eccentric.”

“Eccentric?”

Gwenvair blushed a bit then nodded, “Sorry. Good morning, Joe.”

Joe chuckled, “It’s fine. I shouldn’t have pushed it. You seem stressed.”

She looked up at that then relaxed, “Yes. Monster tides are not exactly rare, but they are often nerve wracking and many die.”

Joe frowned at that, “I apologize. I do not mean to make light of the issue.”

Gwenvair smiled sincerely at that and shook her head, “You live in safety. I can understand how you may find this simple.”

Joe grew serious, “No. No I do not. You are right that much of my life was in safety, but I do not think this is simple or unimportant.”

Gwenvair took a deep sigh and seemed to deflate slightly, and relaxed, “Still, we are both quite grateful.”

“You are welcome. But also, you do not need to be overly concerned. This is my home city as well, now.”

Gwenvair’s smile grew at that, “Your home?”

Joe grinned, “Most likely. I will explore this world and cradle, but yeah. It’s kind of my home now.”

Gwenvair seemed struck at that, and her smile grew a bit but then the clambering of feet coming down the stairs interrupted them and Joe turned to find the two boys racing down. Kilniara came down a bit later, quietly, and Joe wondered if she’d hidden back down the hallway before coming down with the boys since Gwenvair had taken to sitting in the common room blocking the only way out of the inn.

Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

The boys nodded as they came up, but Kilniara soon relaxed and settled in beside Gwenvair and Joe frowned.

“Don’t we need to head to the wall?”

“Should you not eat breakfast?”

Joe’s frown cleared at that, “Is there time?”

“There should be, if we are quick about it.”

Joe nodded and then called out for meals for each of them, adding in Gwenvair after checking if she wanted some. They ate quickly, having little time for conversation, but it was still lighthearted and enjoyable and everyone joined in with short quips and comments throughout their meal.

At one point, they began laughing so hard that most couldn’t eat, and Joe had to call a cease fire so all could eat. Just a little after that, Chulnan came in, seeming to be a bit rushed, and furtive. He calmed when he saw Joe.

Joe saw him and frowned, then grew apologetic, “I’m sorry. I must go to the wall. We did not practice today, so do not need healing. I should have told you yesterday.”

Chulnan paused at that, nodding, “Ah. That makes sense. You go to defend the wall?”

“Yes. The Matriarch asked me to come.”

Chulnan seemed to consider at that before nodding. Joe, feeling bad the man had come all the way in the morning, waved towards an empty seat, although the table was starting to get crowded.

“Join us? At least let me pay for your meal. You must have not eaten yet since you usually eat with us.”

Chulnan relaxed and grinned a that, nodding, “Thank you, eccentric.”

Joe grinned and ordered another meal which allowed the others to slow down and enjoy their meal. Joe did look towards Gwenvair with concern about the time, but she quickly waved it away, stating that they would have heard the bells if the wave had started. Most waves didn’t start till later in the morning, which Joe found a bit odd but the conversation derailed him from diving into it.

The waitress brought over another breakfast for Chulnan almost immediately, the lack of choice meant the meal came rather quickly, and for that Joe was grateful, but he did find some of the meals becoming a bit bland and repetitive. In any case, he was used to his mother’s style of cooking which involved a significant lack of choice joined with an appropriate gratefulness for the meal.

Before Joe could even eat the meal, a butler like person appeared at his elbow, “Sir. Please follow me. Telnia, First in Line for Matriarch awaits.”

Joe blinked in surprised, looking up at the man, “She awaits?”

“Certainly, sir. Please follow me.”

Joe replied, “I’m currently eating.”

“Your meal will be available after you have seen to her needs.”

“Has she eaten yet?” Joe rebutted.

The butler froze, mouth opening and closing for a bit before replying slowly, “I… believe so, yes.”

“And she is not polite enough to wait for her own master to eat as well?”

That seemed to shut the man up but Joe wasn’t done yet and turned to face the butler, “I would like you to ask a question. Who am I?”

The butler seemed rally at that and nodded, “You are Joe, an eccentric cultivator.”

Joe thought for a bit, nodding, “Hmm… and who am I to Telnia?”

“Telnia, First in Line for Matriarch?” the man asked politely as if clarifying who Joe was speaking of but with enough disdain to reveal that he was actually correcting Joe’s poor respect for his charge.

“Yes,” Joe replied bluntly, not willing to be distracted.

“She is the First in Line for Matriarch.”

“But who am I to her? Who is she to me?”

The butler took a moment to catch his meaning and replied quickly enough.

“You are her master and she is your apprentice.”

“I am the master, then, yes?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Interesting. Then, please return to her and ask this question to her. Repeat exactly as I say. ‘Does the apprentice command the master or the master the apprentice? Does the apprentice come to the master or the master to the apprentice?’ When she has an answer, she can give it to me herself. Have a good day, sir.”

Joe turned away from the butler and returned to his meal. The other four stared at Joe, Gwenvair struggling to keep her laughter to herself while the other three seemed to be hiding, not wishing to offend the man as they could not afford to. Or, it seemed that way to Joe. Joe didn’t wish to make things any more antagonistic so simply began eating before waving the other three to their meals as well.

“Go ahead. Eat. We have a long day at the wall today.”

The butler had been standing, unable to respond as he was still stunned by Joe’s dismissal so was still there when Joe realized that he still hadn’t told the man where to meet them. He almost decided against it, but realized doing so would only make things worse, so decided to at least maintain some civility.

“Oh, right. Apologies, but please let your charge know we will be on the city wall. You may go now. It’s not fun to eat while having someone loom over them. Off you go.”

Joe waved at that man until he began to step back. He did seem to be ready to speak a few times and Joe quickly cut him off.

“Uh! Uh! No. I seek an answer from her and her alone. She wished me to be her master, then she needs to be the apprentice, not you. She speaks to me; not others for she is the apprentice. Let her know. She may decide.”

The man finally left with that, obviously flabbergasted but also quite angry and Joe really couldn't have cared less. After the butler left, Joe shook his head and sighed while Gwenvair broke into laughter. Joe looked up at that laughter and began chuckling himself before shaking his head.

“I really hate entitled people. So foolish and blind and sadly, many of the nobility are much like this.”

Gwenvair sobered at that, nodding softly before grimacing and looking away. Joe saw her look and tempered his laughter as he watched her.

“Had a few bad experiences yourself, then, Gwenvair?”

Gwenvair looked up at her name, looking at Joe before smiling wryly and laughing a bit, “Yes. It is never pleasant dealing with many of my peers.”

Joe nodded, “Any who have… been saved from that idiocy?”

Gwenvair barked a short laugh and shook her head, “No. None amongst my peers and I fear it is dangerous to attempt to find any who are.”

It was Joe’s turn to grimace before nodding, “Yeah. I get that. Sorry about that.”

Gwenvair stared at him for a bit with that comment and Joe found himself a bit uncomfortable with her direct stare and replied quickly.

“What?”

“You truly do understand, don’t you?” Gwenvair quickly asked in surprised realization.

Joe laughed and nodded, “Yeah. I guess I do.”

“But you say you are not a noble?”

Joe laughed at that and shook his head, “There are jerks everywhere, so…”

Gwenvair’s emotions broke through the clouds, a brilliant smile erupting from her face as she smiled brightly, “That is certainly true.”