Ewald turned eight years old. The maids congratulated him in the morning. Of course, he couldn’t care less. Regardless, they presented him with something he had seen once before. He saw it back at the party that was held to announce his presence to the noble society.
It was a cake which was something he wasn’t allowed to eat back then. He wanted to ask what it was called. Of course, he could not.
It tasted really sweet. In fact, he had never tasted anything this sweet before. Yes, there was Macomaco tea, but its sweet taste was subtle. The cake was so sweet that it made his brain numb momentarily.
I will ask Mrs. Harder about what this is later.
Noah and Greta married. They were supposed to be engaged for a full year but they decided that they didn’t need a full year to decide. They were smitten with each other anyway.
What surprised him was the house they moved into. It wasn’t exactly a house. It was a simple hut. His parents’ house was a luxurious one compared to their new home, which made him realize that Grent wasn’t exactly a poor farmer. He was wealthy, not rich but wealthy enough.
As much as he wanted to help them out financially, it was not really his place to pry. Besides, it wasn’t as if he had any money to begin with.
Yes, money. He felt it was time to make some money. Ideally, Elias did tell him that he’d be given an allowance one day. For the time being though, there was no need to give him any allowances simply because he was barred from leaving the manor. However, the ban was going to be lifted soon with threats seemingly having been taken care of, or so he was told.
“Looking good,” Ewald said gleefully as he inspected a small patch of Macomaco tea field. He was given a small patch of land in a corner of the rear garden. It was the size of a tennis field. While it wasn’t big, it was big enough for him to spend a few hours a day and be able to provide some very much needed extra supply of Macomaco tea to the manor.
In fact, once maids found out that Ewald was farming the tea, they began to volunteer to help. Obviously, he wasn’t going to teach them how to pick the leaves but he did let them do minor chores which they complied gleefully.
“Oh, gosh, this is bliss,” Greta remarked as she sipped her Macomaco tea in the barracks. Her marriage didn’t change anything for her. Her dressing code didn’t change. Her hairstyle didn’t change. Nothing changed for her. If anything changed, it was Noah who was working even harder to train soldiers. He was really revved up.
“This is the least I can do for all you’ve done for me, Mrs. Harder.” Ewald buttered her up.
“Please do give the maids some as well. They will worship you for it.”
Oh, I am sure, they will.
“Of course,” He beamed a smile at her.
A soldier walked in and gave a light bow toward Ewald.
“Milord, Sir. Hunt is calling you,” He said.
“You called me, Sir. Hunt?”
“Yes. Some good news for you.”
Elias explained that he may now finally leave the manor.
“You may even register at the Lux guild if you wish but somebody will need to accompany you.”
“And who’d that be?”
Elias clicked his fingers, and a young boy entered the room at once. He had very dark green hair that was almost black and green eyes. He reminded Ewald of younger Theo Ros.
“This is Raem, 11. He’s been trained and is a fine swordsman for his age.”
The lack of a last name meant he wasn’t a noble.
Raem performed a light bow with a palm on his chest.
“The name is Raem. It is an honor to serve you, milord.”
“Likewise.”
“If you ever need me, simply call me.”
“Where would I find you in general?”
“About that,” Elias interjected. “Allow me to explain.”
Edmund had apparently set up a decoy house not far from the manor. The house was to be used exclusively for Ewald while he was adventuring. He would return to the house, not to the manor. The house had a secret underground route that connected to the Fenchel manor.
“Raem and a maid will always be present in the house. If you wish to go on adventuring, go to the house.”
Ewald had a suspicion at this point that Raem may have been operating an entirely different business for the Fenchel house. He felt that Edmund wouldn’t go this far to prepare for his adventure. He assumed that the whole setup was already in place for another purpose.
“I see. Thank you, Sir. Hunt.”
Elias waved Raem away. “You may leave.”
Bowing, he left at once.
“There is another piece of news I must tell you,” He continued.
“Go on, Sir. Hunt.”
“Lady Noelle will join you as an apprentice maid starting tomorrow.”
“She should be six now, yes?”
“Very close, aye.”
“What is her background supposed to be?”
Elias beamed a grin. “She’s a merchant’s daughter no more. The maids have been informed that she is an illegitimate daughter of a landless noble.”
“An upgrade nevertheless.”
“True.”
Ewald folded his arms, in thoughts. “Shouldn’t Idda join up as well? She’s now five, yes?”
“Fives but, from what I can tell, she is nowhere mature enough.”
So, Noelle has the potential then… Well, better for me anyway.
“I see. And Alena?”
Elias shook his head weakly.
“I see.”
Ewald recalled their first meeting. Indeed, Noelle did show extraordinary maturity in the situation. Whether they were compatible as a couple would be an entirely different story however. Regardless, he was somewhat excited by the prospect of finally having a girlfriend.
Can’t do jackshit with her though. We are all too damn young.
“Thank you, Sir. Hunt. One last question before I take my leave, sir.”
“Go on.”
“Where is the entrance for the tunnel to reach the decoy house?”
“Oh, that. I believe you’ve seen a shed near the tea farm you’ve been tending.”
“It’s there?”
“Yes. The tunnel isn’t exactly top secret. Those who’ve been here for decades should know its existence.”
So…Whatever the decoy house has been used for, it has been going on for a long time then.
He had no strong desire to find more about the matter. Thus, he bid farewell to Elias and went out to the tea field. It used to be a little hideout for him to get away from the nobility stuff. Nowadays, however, he could find at least a maid hanging around the field, pulling out whatever weeds they saw. They didn’t used to be this vigilant until they were told that some of the tea leaves would be given to them.
To understand why they were going overzealous over the tea was because of the price. A small bag of Macomaco tea, which was enough for about five servings, would cost a silver coin. 100 iron coins made one silver coin.
Maids at the Fenchel manor were usually paid about 25 iron coins per day. Basically, a serving of Macomaco tea would cost their entire daily pay. Additionally, it was something only rich nobles or merchants would be able to drink in the first place because, aside from its price, it was hard to get a hold of in the first place.
Being given a chance to drink such luxurious tea was enough to fire them up.
“Hello, there.” He casually threw his greeting to her who turned around at once and bowed sincerely.
“Milord,” She replied curtly. Then she quickly left the field.
He watched her leave. His purpose wasn’t to tend the field but check out the shed. Once the maid vanished from her view, he surveyed his surroundings once and headed straight over to the shed in a corner. It was where farming tools had been stored. He hadn’t noticed any openings previously. However, now that he paid close attention, he did notice a trap door covered with thick dust and dirt.
“Damn, never saw this.” He muttered as he dusted off its handle. After relocating some farming tools to clear the way, he opened the trap door, revealing wooden stairs heading down into darkness. It was pitch black; he would need a torch.
“Well, let’s check it out tomorrow.”
The next morning, as usual the maids invaded his quarter. However, as Elias did mention, Noelle was among the maids. Upon entering the quarter, she would survey her surroundings with her mouth open. It was as if it was her first time seeing such an extravagant room.
“Don’t just stand there!” Emily barked. “Get a move on it! Move! Move!”
“R, right!” Startling, she snapped back to reality and got a move on with a duster in her hand. It looked as if she knew what she was doing. Whether she was trained before coming here or she had been doing this, he didn’t know.
“I see a new face. Who might you be?” Ewald played a fool.
“The name’s Noelle. A newbie,” Emily replied curtly. She was leaving the cleaning and dusting to her. It looked like Emily herself got an upgrade in her duties.
“Noelle at your service,” She made a light bow.
Impressive for a five year-old.
Once the usual jobs were done, maids were to leave. But Ewald ordered Noelle to stay on. Emily asked why.
“She’s a new face. I’d like to talk to her for a bit.”
She didn’t look like she bought the excuse, but there was nothing she could do to defy him.
Tension seemed to fade away from her shoulders visibly once maids were out of the quarter. Exhaling, she sagged her shoulders.
“Not easy, this,” She remarked in a whispering tone.
Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author.
“Noelle, it’s been a while.”
She curtseyed in return. “Sir, Ewald. Please allow me to leave.”
“Is there a problem?”
“I do not wish to be bullied.”
He never knew the very concept of bullying. He never bullied anyone and was never bullied. It was an alien concept for him. Not wanting to ask what she meant, he asked her.
“What do you mean?”
Noelle sighed with exasperation. “I guess you’ve been treated so well that you don’t know what bullying is, don’t you.”
It was a quite blunt remark. He could also sense a tint of mocking in her voice. It was true that he didn’t know what bullying was. He had been treated well also, but probably not the level of treatment she was referring to.
So, she doesn’t like me. Great.
He internally shrugged. It wasn’t as if she was the only girl he had to get along with. Feeling offended, he shooed her away.
“Okay, I got it. You may leave.” He waved her away, and Noelle left at once after a brief bow. He had a feeling that she may have misunderstood him. Regardless, he wasn’t going to babysit someone who wasn’t welcoming to begin with especially when he had choices.
After obtaining a torch, he went to the shed and opened the trap door. Descending down to the tunnel revealed a very well constructed tunnel. The walls were bricked. This was clearly built to last.
When he had walked for a few minutes, there were wooden stairs and another trap door above. He knocked it, and there was no response. He knocked it one more time, and it creaked open.
A middle-aged maid welcomed him.
“Sir. Ewald, I assume?”
“Correct.”
“Please.” She opened the trap door completely and stepped aside. Where he ended up was the basement of the decoy house which was stacked with crates.
“Is Raem here?”
“He should be back shortly.”
The middle-aged maid led him upstairs where it looked like the place was nothing more than an ordinary house. No furniture on the floor looked exquisite. In fact, the interior reminded him of his own home in Laufeld.
“May I ask the purpose of this house?” He didn’t expect an honest answer actually.
“When the lord was younger, he had invited ladies to this house,” said the maid. He let out a snicker in response.
“I see. Thank you.”
“Please, make yourself home until Raem arrives. Use any room upstairs.”
It was this moment Raen made his return.
“Karla, I am bac-” Noticing Ewald, he bowed lightly at once. “Milord. My apologies.”
The house was reasonably large enough for about five people. It would have been slightly larger than his home in Laufeld. There were four rooms upstairs, two of which seemed to have been used by Raem and the maid, Karla. There was a large dining room and a kitchen downstairs along with two separate washrooms. Raem led him to the dining room where there was a crude wooden dining table in the middle.
“So, Raem, what exactly do you do here?” He asked while sitting down.
After Raem sat down, he made a troubled face. He glanced at Karla who stood still and was a short distance away.
“Milord, Karla here is my mother.”
What?
“What?" Ewald put his fingers on his lower lip. “Hmm, who is your father?”
Could it be Edmund? As far as I knew he had no son though.
“My father is a younger brother of the former lord of the Fenchel. I am an illegitimate child. I was never acknowledged.”
“I see. My apologies for prying.”
“It’s fine, milord. We’ve been given this house and have been assigned as caretakers.”
“So, what do you do exactly? I know you’ve been assigned to me as a bodyguard. But what have you been doing before?”
He glanced at Karla again who did nothing but put on a warm smile on her face.
“Milord, I do whatever job I can get to earn my keep. We’ve been allowed to live here, but we are not paid and must earn to keep ourselves fed.”
I see. I see what the deal is now.
“I assume you will be paid for the service you will render to me?”
“Correct, sir.”
Ewald glanced at Karla who was still putting on her smile. She was middle-aged, probably in late 30s or early 40s. She had really gentle features and had aged well. He had a hunch that she was pushed into the scandal. In other words, about 12 years ago, the man pushed himself onto her, and she could not reject him. Thus, a one-night stand and Raem was born subsequently.
Nodding at himself internally, he understood their situation. Looking at Karla, he asked a simple question.
“Lady Karla, are you happy?”
“I, I am not a lad-” Her warm smile broke down for the first time.
“I don’t care what anyone says, Raem is my cousin, meaning you’d be my aunt. I shall address you correctly.”
Karla blushed for some odd reason, and Raem looked happy.
“I thank you,” He said. “It’s the truth many seem to ignore.”
“It’s the truth indeed,” Ewald agreed. “Raem, you know what, don’t address me like that in private. It gives me creeps. I mean we are related for fuck’s sake.”
Raem laughed pleasantly. “I do like you, but I’d like to keep up the act. It will be safer for us.”
He wasn’t going to push far.
“Very well, I do understand where you are coming from.”
Raem’s face hardened at once. Standing up from his chair, he got on one knee.
“Milord, from the bottom of my heart, I thank you for acknowledging what everyone else has refused to do. I shall serve you in the most sincere way.”
Ewald offered a handshake to which Raem agreed with a bright smile on his face. Karla shed tears.
Once the commotion was over, Ewald asked Raem.
“I wish to register at the Lux guild,” He said to which Raem smiled.
“I am already registered at the guild,” Raem replied. “But they won’t let you do anything too rough when you are too young and you won’t be able to find any group to join, either. I think 15 is the minimum.”
“That’s fine. I just want to do something. The nobility crap has been tiring me.”
Raem laughed, holding his belly. Karla smiled as well. She no longer had this fake smile on her anymore. She became much more human.
“I do see where you are coming from,” He said after laughing. Then his expression hardened right after. “I have been taking jobs from the guild. They don’t give me real jobs. What I’ve been doing is locating lost pets and whatnot.”
“We are a bit too young after all. I don’t blame them.”
“Indeed,” Raem agreed. “Milord, are you capable?”
It was a vogue question.
“I am a wind mage,” Ewald responded. “And I can defend myself with my sword. I am pretty decent with archery also.”
Nodding repeatedly, Raem folded his arms.
“The guild won’t give us high-paying jobs, but we can find some on our own if we can do it.”
“Oh? Curious, do go on.”
A crooked grin emerged on Raem’s face. This was his true face, and one couldn’t blame him. Obviously, his mother, a former full-time maid, wasn’t going to go on an adventure and make money. He had to make the money to feed himself and his mum. In other words, whatever shortcuts, he took it.
Ewald played along, fully understanding his motives.
“Raem, tell me whatever you are planning. Let’s do the shit.”
Raem, in return, smiled brightly.
“As of late, I’ve been keeping my eyes on a herd of cats.”
“Cats?”
Apparently, the alpha of the cats appeared to have some kind of expensive choker around its neck.
“It looks to be gold. I am not a hundred percent sure though,” Raem added.
He wanted to catch or kill the cat and sell the choker. The issue was that he couldn’t corner them alone. Even if he did somehow, he wouldn’t be able to take them down alone.
“I am more comfortable with a bow than a sword,” Ewald said. “I could just snipe it from afar.”
“If you could do that, it would be easy. Are you down for this?”
“Absolutely. My body is itching to go.”
“Alright!”
Excited, Raem stood up. “I am gonna get my gears. You should as well.” Then ran upstairs. Ewald stood up also and was going to head to the basement, through the tunnel and back to the manor.
“I shall leave the trap door unlocked from now on,” Karla said as he passed her by.
“Lady Karla, I have a question.”
“Yes?”
“Do maids marry?”
It took her a moment to make a reply.
“There are two types of maids. The first is someone like me, a commoner becoming a maid. Maids like me don’t try to marry.”
He tilted his head. “Don’t try to?”
“Maids must be single. Once married, that is it. The only time a commoner maid is going to marry is if her man is wealthy enough or she gets an offer to be a mistress from a noble house.”
I see. That makes sense.
“The second type of maids is maids of noble lineage. They are usually illegitimate children. They tend to get married before turning 20 although I’ve seen some end up becoming maids for life.”
“I see. Thank you.”
Karla gave him a light nod. He assumed that Karla never planned to marry. Given Raem’s age and her age, she would have been late 20s when she conceived him. She would have been well past her marriage age.
Soon, for the first time, Ewald stepped into Lux. He had been in this city for years now, but this was the first time he ever stepped outside.
Lux was nothing like Laufeld. The houses looked more sophisticated and they were two stories. But the major difference was population density. In Laufeld, houses had some distance between each other. In Lux, however, houses were built right next to each other alongside cobblestone roads that were spread out like a web. The city had stone walls also although they weren’t tall. In fact, the walls of Laufeld were taller, but those were wooden walls.
Ewald glanced at Raem who was wearing leather armor. He had a sword on his belt and a small wooden round shield on his back. As for Ewald himself, he had his short sword and a bow on his back. He no longer carried a quiver since he could use wind magic to conjure arrows out of thin air literally.
“Where is your quiver?” Raem asked.
“Don’t need one. I am a wind mage.”
He looked confused. “So? What does that have to do with not carrying a quiver?”
Ewald beamed a smile. “You will see soon enough. Now, where are the cats?”
“Right, follow me!”
Where Raem led him to was a tavern where it looked to be packed with people both in and outside. He had never seen a tavern before. Thus, he inspected the house with deep curiosity.
Taking a peek inside an open window, he saw numerous wooden tables. It was full of people, and waitresses in skimpy clothes were dotting around tables while taking orders or delivering dishes. His eyes were wide-open when he saw the bare knees of the waitresses. He never knew there was such a thing as a short skirt. The only skirt he had seen so far was long skirts that covered all the way to ankles.
Meanwhile, Raem went to an alley next to the tavern. There was an open crate that was smelling awful. Apparently, it was a food waste container, and that was where the herd of cats were. Some of them were digging into the crate in search of edible food.
He pointed at a cat that was sitting on a higher ground than others.
“See that black cat? Look at its choker.”
Indeed, the cat had a golden choker around its neck. It was licking its paw as they approached at which point all the cats went full alert. Initially, they hissed at them which didn’t deter them at all. At this point, Raem drew out his sword and readied his shield, and Ewald took out his bow.
Noticing their intention, the cats ran deeper into the alley and jumped onto a roof after making a series of jumps off walls nearby. Raem sighed at this point.
“This is why I couldn’t catch them,” He lamented. But this wouldn’t stop Ewald who readied his arrow.
“Spirits of wind, hear my call. Grant me an arrow.”
A translucent green arrow slotted itself into his bow. Raem whistled as he saw the magic.
“So, that’s why you don’t need a quiver. Impressive. I didn’t know a wind mage could do that.”
Drawing the bow, he made a shot at the cat with the choker. It looked quite surprised at being attacked from a distance, but its lightning reflex insured that it dodged the arrow albeit barely.
Raem clenched his fist. “Damn, almost!”
The cats, now realizing that they were no longer safe on the roof, began to dash elsewhere to be completely out of their sights. Raem began to track them but he wasn’t very effective since he was on the ground.
“Spirits of wind, hear my call. Make me fly: Levitation!”
He wouldn’t be able to ascend too high, but it was enough for him to have a bird’s eye view of the cats.
“Spirit of wind, hear my call. Make me an arrow!”
He took another shot that was way off. He soon realized he shouldn’t shoot in the air because he couldn’t make a steady aim. He was slightly bouncing around in the air.
“Raem! Try to follow me!”
“Understood!”
Instead, he attempted to lure the cats into a corner by strategically flying over them. It took a while, but he did manage to sort of trap them in a dead end of an alley. Raem soon blocked the only way out. WIth his shield in front, he carefully made his advance while Ewald landed on an edge of a roof. The cats were loudly hissing.
When Ewald made his shot at the cat with the choker, it dodged again.
“Raem! The cat knows I am on him. Distract him!”
“Got it!”
Realizing that they were really cornered, the cats made a mad dash at Raem, clawing and biting him. But his leather armor rendered most of their attacks harmless. As he swung his sword repeatedly, he struck down several cats. The cat with the choker, however, remained in the back among a few cats. Its eyes were fixed at Ewald. Apparently, it wasn’t going to get shot by the arrow.
“So be it,” Ewald said out loud. He put his bow back and pulled out his sword instead. Holding it firm, he jumped down. Right on cue, the remaining cats jumped on him, clawing and biting him. Ewald didn’t wear any armor, but his wardrobe was tailored from thick linen, preventing any real cuts.
Both of them swung their swords in a frantic manner as they battled tens of aggressive cats.
When they exited the alley, Raem was holding a dead cat with the choker. He looked fine although there were a few claw scratches on his face. In contrast, Ewald’s clothes were battered although he had no facial scratches. This was because, in Raem’s case, the cats realized that their attacks weren’t getting through and thus started to attack his exposed bare skin which were his hands and face. In Ewald’s case, cats’ attacks were getting through, thus they didn’t bother attacking his exposed skin.
Regardless, Raem was all smiles. Ewald, too, was feeling good. He had some actions at last.
Once they were back at the decoy house, Raem placed the choker on the dining table.
“It looks to be gold. I am not sure though,” He said.
“How can we tell?”
Raem shrugged. He didn’t know.
The choker had a simple design. It was just a large ring with a heart shape attached to it.
“I am assuming that the cat used to be a pet for someone rich,” Ewald said. “It’s still insane that one would make a cat choker out of gold though.”
“Excuse me,” Karla interjected, entering the area. “What is that?”
Raem explained to his mother what they had done.
“I want to know its value before trying to pawn it. I don’t want to get scammed,” was Raem’s reason.
“I will sell it,” Karla said. “If a child tries to sell this, everyone will try to scam.”
She had a point.
Well, it turned out that the choker wasn’t made of gold. It was made of brass. All she could get was 10 iron coins.
“Should have known.” Raem’s shoulders slumped. “If it was made of real gold, someone would have caught it already.”
10 iron coins wasn’t really much. It was less than what a maid at the manor would make per day whose wage was already on low end although maids wouldn’t need to worry about spending money for food since they were fed.
Ewald didn’t have any complaints however. It was a fun day, but he wasn’t going to make it known since Raem was clearly struggling to get by. It would have been rude.
“Raem, let’s hit the guild tomorrow and see what small jobs they have.”
“Yes, milord. I need the money.”
They fist-bumped. This was the start of their long relationship.