The estate was something equivalent to the Buckingham Palace of England in the old world. That’s the best he could come up with thanks to his increased memory and fondness of looking random things up online as his brain tried to process the giant home of the Master mage Cronus.
It was ornate, dignified, and stuck to the simple color scheme of the tundra landscape, white and light blue being the prominent colors. He could tell at an instant the well-carved windows and roofs, the decorated colored glass alone probably costing more than enough gold to fund Eve Glade ten times over. The area surrounding the estate was filled with lush gardens with a landscape that might as well be considered a park of its own. Several, if not dozens of knights were proudly standing by and patrolling the land, despite the numerous runes that would even give Zeke a headache.
No matter how you spin it, this belonged to the elite of the elites, the top dog of a magic country, and what better way to describe this place other than Cronus’ crib? At the very least, this goes to the main lord of Arcelot as a whole, but considering how long living Cronus was, it might as well be his home. Hell, he might even have built it himself nearly forever ago.
Entering through the large entrance way with the core group, the same colored white and light blue archway that was several feet thick in diameter, all of the knights proudly stood and saluted the man in a strange gesture. They had both their hands touch all their finger tips together at the center of their chest, creating a sort of cage, and inclined their heads. It was different from the fist to the heart gesture, but Zeke can imagine that it was to signify their cores in some way. The heart and the core was literally the same thing in this world, the core being another word for the soul of the person. The salute was meant to give respect to the one above you with all your being, to encapsulate your dedication for your country and fellow man.
Does he and Mikella have to copy the gesture? It already felt so benign even if he understood it. Having to change salutes too was rather messed up in his mind. He wondered if doing a different salute constituted it as an affront to their country. His head was starting to hurt again.
Eventually crossing their way through the royal gardens, at least in Zeke’s mind, Clara watched with awe and majesty of the place. She tugged on Mikella’s hand and whispered if they were going to live here. He wasn’t sure whether Cronus was listening, but it was a valuable question to ask. Mikella assured her that they probably wouldn’t, and somehow that eased Clara a little. Perhaps she just liked to look at it, but not really live in it. It was a solid difference.
Zoan actually looked mildly interested. Contrary to her impassiveness, she looked around with the eyes of a scholar, as though appreciating the artistry put in within the gardens. Zeke just shook his head as he thought about their living arrangements.
He figured that the question of where they’ll stay would come up eventually, but his mind turned blank the moment they entered the estate through the large entrance, twin steel doors that were inches thick this time, at the terrace. If the outside was magnificent, the inside was three times more so.
The walls were pristine and marbled, the furnishings lavishing and expensive. The air was packed with mana from all the runes that mesh well together to create this environment in the first place. For a moment, he felt his mana regenerate faster than normal, but despite being full, he didn’t feel bloated. If anything, he felt enriched, as though he could actually improve any magic related skills easier here.
There were of course some paintings and other sorts of valuable knickknacks, such as the mannequins that displayed extremely expensive ornate gear that radiated power from the enchantments. Weapons held by the mannequins themselves in positions that looked like they were ready for combat or in the middle of a combat stance. The weapons gleamed with radiance from the enchantments they carried, and that also meshed well with the runes surrounding them.
The otherworlders, or filthy commoners in this case, were trying to keep their simplicity at bay, but looking at all of this was basically trying to stop a starving man from going to eat at a feast. It was just too much for their minds to process, much less to keep in control of themselves.
“Let’s go to one of the private rooms here,” Cronus mentioned, and then pointed at something that Zeke had no other way of mentioning.
He pointed at an obvious elevator. It was an elevator in everything but its name, with closed iron doors and a black plaque displayed above. The runes activated as the black plaque displayed a number ‘01’, then Cronus pressed the wall next to the door as a certain number of rooms flashed, one of the things he pressed was a circle of runes that flashed brighter than the rest. The doors immediately opened, revealing an empty small cube-shaped room within. The group headed inside, almost going by automation, as the doors closed and the elevator smoothly ran up the building.
“Oh, I’m surprised you four are okay with this,” Isabelle mentioned offhandedly, seemingly surprised at how they kept their cool.
“We… had something like this as well in our old world,” Mikella mentioned awkwardly. “Actually, it’s so downright similar in our world, it’s almost scary.
“So this… ‘technology’ of yours can recreate this as well?” Cronus asked, more impressed than he sounded.
“Y-Yeah,” Mikella answered.
“Huh, and here I thought the world was more… barbaric without magic according to your explanations. I need to rethink this.”
Cronus didn’t sound offensive at all. If anything, he sounded more as though he made a wrong assumption and corrected it. For a mage like him, perhaps anything made without magic would be crude and ‘barbaric’, so perhaps it was a good thing he changed his mind.
The elevator smoothly lifted towards the upper area of the estate. It was a smooth ride, but considering how long the ride was, Zeke was bamboozled at just how large this estate was. He wondered if some sort of spatial magic made the estate way bigger than it seemed from the outside.
You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.
Finally, the elevator dinged to signify the end of the trip, and the iron doors slid open to reveal a quaint room. It was large to look like a living room, the furniture giving it that noble feel, but it also gave way to humbleness as the furnishings weren’t so extravagant.
Just plain tiles instead of marble flooring, the walls were a smooth yellow coloring with some paintings on it to signify the beginning of dawn. The lights above were bright but not glaring, but it was from the ceiling rather than the chandelier which was just a decorative piece rather than actually used for lighting.
Zeke tried hard to study the room, but there weren't too many runes he could spot. It feels almost bare, the runes he could spot and actually recognize were only for the basic necessities such as the bathroom beyond this room and a small kitchen.
“Is this…” Zeke asked, the otherworlders following his actions with their gazes.
“It’s a private room, mostly for guests and such,” Cronus added. “It is also very adequate in keeping any eavesdroppers in their place. You might not see them, but the room was entirely built with a special material made solely for keeping sound in and never out.”
So that was why Zeke couldn’t sense any runes around the room. It was because the room was built with solid special material rather than with magic, making his senses useless. Just as he was about to ask, Mikella went in first.
“Why use materials instead of runes? Is there anything special about this room?”
“Arcelot is known for advancing magic techniques and the like, so using magic to counter magic is the norm here,” Isabelle answered. She looked at the room fondly, as though she preferred to be here than anywhere else. “So when people try to spy, they often use very articulate spells for the job. So by then they couldn’t do a thing when the opposition they face is not magic at all, but instead just special stone and steel.”
“But wouldn’t they counter that with something else?” Zeke added.
“If they got the materials, which of course we keep a very solid monopoly on,” Cronus smirked, making the two shiver at the utter control he had. “Now come on, it’s time to start our true briefing on this mission you need to take.”
The two otherworlders looked at each other before telling Zoan to keep an eye on Clara. Zoan, thankfully, didn’t make a fuss this time so she opted to take the clearly upset Clara away for the adults to start their ‘boring’ conversation.
Zeke wished he could actually go with the kids to play than to join this conversation. Mikella was in the same boat, but the two knew that this was important. They sat down in their lush but comfortable couches for them to begin their meeting. Somehow, Isabelle summoned what looked like piping hot of tea, gingerly placing it on the small table between them and pouring a cup for each one. Just as what a queen would have, the kettle and the cups were of such fine make that Zeke guessed in his old world this would be worth more than an entire year of paying out his apartment.
As for the tea… he was enamoured by it. The scent alone reminded him of simple herbs that weren't overpowering, weaved by nature for the sensitive noses. When he took a sip, sizzling liquid burned at first, but his new improved body instead relished the temperature, only enhancing the taste of the tea. It wasn’t bitter or tangy, but rather sweet and impactful, yet he swallowed the liquid with ease, filling him with a sense of ease.
“This tea is… delicious,” Zeke said in awe.
“I’m glad you enjoy it,” Isabelle said. She sounded more pleased than usual.
“Did you make this yourself?” Mikella asked, her eyes glittering to know while Zeke just continued to drink it with gusto.
“I did, but the ingredients aren't so common. That’s why it’s for special occasions,” Isabelle said regretfully, turning to her husband. “Let’s try to ease them a little first, darling.”
“Of course, love,” Cronus smiled. He looked almost at peace with the tea in hand, as though he wanted to shut everything else off and just enjoy the tea. Zeke felt for him, but he pushed it to the side as Cronus turned to the two. “I’m sure you’re aware now of your circumstances. We brought you here for the purpose of helping us clear those towers which supposedly only you two can do. I’m also guessing you want to make sure that your sister stays as far away even if she could also do the same, if your story is true.”
Zeke nodded, remembering the only time Clara had to survive along with them in the first tower. It was gruesome, and perhaps compared to everything else, that’s what scarred Clara the most.
“We have a lot of questions before we go to any of the towers, though,” Mikella answered, taking the first step. “Obviously, we wanna know where we’re gonna live, and how do you plan on us getting to these towers by ourselves?”
“Reasonable questions, but unfortunately that is a little out of my hands.”
Zeke and Mikella stare dumbfoundedly at the man as he takes another sip of the tea. Isabelle poured some more which Cronus took graciously before sipping again, as though what he said wasn’t ridiculous at all.
“Why is that?” Zeke asked.
“Well… I am already taking many liberties to bring you four here as it is. Normally, such a thing would break my own laws of bringing in citizens from the outside to here unless they were temporary guests or of important standing. If I were to keep moving ahead like this, the other nobles would pretend to sniff out foul play at work here.”
“Other nobles?” Mikella asked incredulously. “You’re the lord of the entire country here. Why do you care about what those nobles think?”
“Ah, little girl, being a lord means you are not allowed to do whatever you wish without consequences,” Cronus answered with a kind smile, as though he really was talking to a child. “If a king were to make all kinds of decisions disregarding anything else, would the people not rebel against such an irresponsible king? Would a governor just bring anyone of interest without informing their counsel or their advisers? What I did was equivalent to that. Tell me child–would you trust such a leader?”
Mikella grimaced, having no way to counter that. She can’t even disregard the child remark as it really did sound childish. But Zeke considered it further.
“But she has a point, though,” Zeke said. “Even if they are nobles, if you say that it was important for the country, wouldn’t that take precedence above all else?”
Despite that, Cronus shook his head. “You forget. You seem to believe that the nobles all share the common–actually noble–goal of helping the country. They do not.”
Zeke and Mikella equally deflated at that. If nobles were anything like politicians, it’s no surprise that they mostly care about themselves rather than for the benefit of others, even with their positions.
“Okay, so what does that have to do with us? You’re saying that now you brought us here, we’re on our own?” Mikella asked.
“In a sense, yes,” Cronus answered with a straight face. “Of course, I won’t completely leave you alone. I’ll make sure we have eyes on you to make sure you don’t make any form of trouble, and we’ll leave you with an attendant that will instead answer to your needs.”
“And this attendant…” Zeke slowly said.
“You mean our baby sitter,” Mikella grumbled, leaving Zeke to move on.
“Is that person gonna know about our… circumstances?”
“Of course.”