“Oh!”
My eyes slowly blink open at the maid’s exclamation. Very reluctantly. Sprawled across Kierra’s chest with our legs intertwined, I’m incredibly comfortable. It’d be great if she just left but her shuffling feet tells me she’s not going to. Sigh. Probably getting an eyeful.
Another thing Kierra brought back from the elven continent are clothes made from this white, sheer material that feels great and hides nothing. Painted in the light from the early sun, her light green skin that resembles the first shoots of spring and moonstruck silver hair are a vision.
I raise my chest and look over my shoulder at the young woman who is similarly captivated. She jumps when our eyes meet, hastily lowering her head. “What?”
“Breakfast is being served in the main dining room. Your uncle is requesting your appearance.”
“Hmph. You can go.” I lay back down as she scurries out of the room. A hand in my hair tells me Kierra’s awake and I look up to see her watching me with a brow raised. Ah. In the bright light, her eyes are more golden than green. I love when they get like that. “What’s with that look?”
“Your family that you haven’t seen for years is putting forth effort to reach out to you but you don’t seem thrilled.”
“I might be if they cared about me at all.” I retell the conversation I overheard. “They’re practically selling you,” I growl. “Or at least they’re going to try.”
“A foolish hope. As if wealth would be enough to sway the monarchs of the elven nation.”
“You saying that you couldn’t convince them even if you wanted to?”
“To trade with a group of human merchants? Not even I could. However, if I wanted to purchase the items and then sell them on afterwards, that would be feasible. Something to consider once our funds start running low.”
“Told you, I’ve already got a plan for that.”
“Yes, your little guide to the forest.” She chuckles and sits up, carrying me with her. “This would be a good time to market it. I’ll help you with the drawings.”
Another surprising talent of hers. “…is there anything you’re not good at? Anything at all?”
“Join me for a bath? Last night, the maids showed me the faucets that bring water. You may be weak but I have to admit, human casters are quite creative.”
That’s not an invitation I’ll refuse. Grinning, I throw the blanket off me and take her hand as she walks toward the bathroom.
-
We take our time and are unsurprisingly the last ones to enter the dining room. The rest of the table looks up. Despite the behavior that could easily be taken as an insult, Uncle is still smiling as he waves me to the two empty seats next to him. Seats before my father. Easy to see who he values more.
“Good morning.” He gestures and one of the servants waiting by the wall disappears, likely to retrieve plates for us. “Did the two you sleep well?”
I mumble an affirmative. “Very,” Kierra replies. “You humans seem to love your creature comforts.”
With her tone, I don’t know if that’s a compliment or an insult. Plates are put in front of us and I don’t hesitate to dig in, ignoring any table matters. No need to impress these people since they clearly don’t care about me.
Father watches me with an exasperated expression before clearing his throat. “Jackal, if you have nothing planned for today, I’ll take a walk through the capital.”
“Ah, don’t believe you’ll have time for that. Since Matthias has work to do, I could use your help preparing for the party tonight. There’s much to organize and the guests will start arriving at twelfth bell.”
“Twelfth bell?”
I swallow quickly to answer Kierra’s question but Jac beats me to it. “When the Harvest Kingdom was founded, a being with the cosmic affinity was left on this continent along with the humans. Its name or appearance wasn’t recorded but its teachings were. It taught the king that when the Earth revolved around the sun, it completed a year and how to divide the year into seasons, seasons into months, months into weeks, weeks into days, days into hours. Those hours are announced by the tolling bells found in all major cities and their function is maintained by the Bellkeepers.”
She’s as knowledgeable as ever. “There are seven days of the week and they ring the bell 16 times from daybreak,” I add. “There’s supposedly 24 bells in a day but ringing them after dark would wake people. Nobility normally have their own timepieces.” Not us though, since we’re broke.
Right on time, the soft echoes of tolling bells reach us. “Each toll is different. That’s third bell. Not a lot of time to get this place ready for a party, Uncle.”
“We’ll make do. Perhaps you can help Jacquellin with her preparations.” He looks to his daughter who gives him a discrete nod. Hmm, looks like these two have plans for me.
“That’s fine. And I’d like to use the library. That won’t be a problem, will it?”
“It is a family library. Though try not to get too involved. If you’re anything like your father, once your nose is buried in those books, we won’t see you again until spring.”
My lips twitch as a smile tries to crawl onto my face. That…I think I’ll take that as a compliment. “Kierra, did you have something you wanted to do or…”
“I’ll accompany you for the day.”
-
Jac’s ‘preparations’ is preparing the gifts. Despite the fact that we’re hosting, as the lower house, it falls on us to show our appreciation. If you’re a high noble, your mere presence warrants compensation.
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Of course, Jac doesn’t need help with the gifts. This is just an excuse for more time to speak with Kierra to confirm her position on opening trade with the elves. I figure that out from the very first question she asks while the three of us are wrapping presents.
“It must have been difficult to cross the Enchanted Forest. I’ve read that it is filled with all kinds of dangerous monsters.”
“It’s manageable,” Kierra says, setting a neatly wrapped box on the table.
Jac stares hard at her, waiting for more details. My wife ignores her easily. After several long moments, she turns to me and gives me a look that’s easy to understand.
I ignore her too and reach for the next box.
The gift wrapping becomes a quiet and awkward affair as Jac continues to try and stimulate the conversation. Says a lot about our status that we have to give other people gifts for coming to visit us. It’s a little depressing.
When the last gift is wrapped, Jac takes us to the dining hall that has been cleared for the occasion. Servants are in the midst of transforming the space, setting up tables along the walls for the food and draping expensive tapestries on the wall. The stage at the back of the room tells me that Uncle Jackal plans to invite some musicians as well.
Not incredibly rare in the capital. As winter approaches and the roads become less suited for travel, droves of them will flock here for the seasonal parties and banquets. It’s a risky move, though. Musicians are a sign of status and having bad music at your party could make someone a laughingstock.
People have lost their heads for less.
A maid spots Jac and briskly walks over with a sheet of paper. “The lord asked you to confirm the guest list.”
“Thanks.”
“I see Uncle has you doing all the work again.”
“As his daughter, it’s only natural I lend him a hand,” she replies without looking up from the paper. “He’s getting on in the years.”
Cheh. Making it seem like you’re doing it out of the kindness of your heart. She’s another bane of my childhood. While Gordon always put me down for being a Tome, everyone else put me down for not being my cousin. The perfect lady.
But I know the real her. As someone no one thought would be anything, there was no need for her to play her games with me. “Wouldn’t it be better for Matt to do this? After all, pretty soon, he’ll be the one running the family.”
Her face shows nothing but I know it burns. “My brother has his own responsibilities,” she says coolly while rolling the paper up.
“Mm. Yeah, he’s a capable son, isn’t he? With him in charge, you’ll finally be able to relax and focus on your own life. You can’t stay here forever. I mean, who would have thought I’d get married before you.”
Her eye twitches with the effort to keep from reacting but its futile. I know her too well. My ambitious cousin has ability and her greatest frustration is knowing she’ll never have the opportunity to show it. Not in our male and noble dominated society. For someone like me who couldn't care less about ambition and prestige, it doesn’t matter, but Jac wants to sit in the same room as the big boys.
The excuse for the parties is about finding her a fiancé. Though Uncle says it’s an excuse, I’m certain there’s truth in it. Marrying for political power is the standard in our circles. I bet it was Jackal’s foremost plan to raise his status. Now that Kierra’s come along, he’s shifted focus.
Which is why Jac is so proactive in her ‘pursuit’ of my wife, no doubt. She must think that a good role in uniting our family with the Guiness will give her some power over her future.
Idiot. You’ve lost your mind if you think I’m going to let either one of us become a pawn in another one of your manipulations. “Hey, Kierra. Let’s go for a walk. I want to see the capital before it really gets freezing.”
Jac whips around to us. “Now? We only have a few hours until the party!”
“We’ll be back in time…probably.”
Oh, that’s perfect. Imagining us not being at that party tonight, Jac has an expression like she’s swallowed lemon juice. “It’d be better to choose a different day. There are three free days at the beginning of next week where we have nothing planned. If you could hold off until then, we’ll provide you with the family’s carriage, a guide, and servants to assist you.”
Let the bargaining begin. “Please. We wouldn’t want to trouble you and it hasn’t been that long since I’ve been in the capital. We can find our own way.” I turn to Kierra and she answers my smirk with one of her own. “We can go to all the seedy places I was too young to visit before.”
“How exciting.”
“You can still do that later,” Jac says quickly, a hint of panic entering her voice. “Father offered you the use the library. That includes the summoning records.”
If I was a dog, my tail would be wagging when I hear those words. Jac also sees my enthusiasm and lets out a deep breath. “Just make sure to follow the rules. The last time Matt, hey, wait!”
She calls out to me but I ignore her as I leave the room. Kierra is right beside me as I restrain myself from running through the halls. “Do you want to tell me why you’re so excited?”
“They’re bribing me with summoning records.” Devious bastards, they know I can’t say no to that!
“Every summoner keeps records of every interaction they ever make with an elemental for the next generation. It’s an invaluable source of information for summoners. As old as we are, we’ve got dozens of volumes and we’ve spent thousands of gold crowns obtaining the records of famous summoners outside the family. As disgusting as it is, we’ve even got some Grimoire family records. It’s the Tome family’s greatest treasures.”
“You’re ready to jump out of your skin for a few books.”
I give her a look over my shoulder. Hey now. Even if we’re married, there’re things you can’t say. Summoning records aren’t ‘a few books’. They’re the blood of a summoning family. “Those books are the only accounts of planes besides our own. You’ll understand how valuable that is one day. But for now, you can just watch me drool over them.”
I never thought this day would come. I’ve always been fascinated with my family legacy. With my ability, I thought I’d be a mediocre summoner at best. Mediocre isn’t enough to get access to the summoning records. My palms are getting sweaty with excitement. It’s not my fault. The obsession with elemental planes is practically in my blood.
I throw open the door to Uncle’s study. It’s a nice space but very minimal. None of the tapestries or carpet usually found in the homes of nobles and that’s not his choice. The shallow coffers of the Tome family can’t afford the excess.
Despite that, Uncle seems upbeat seated behind his great desk reading through a stack of papers. Until I barge in. He looks up with a distinctive frown. Our eyes meet and he lets out a big sigh. Heh. There’s no need for either of us to say anything. He knows why I’m here. “I didn’t think we’d have to play our trump card so soon. We’re really trying to do the best thing for the entire family.”
He can see from my expression that I don’t care about any of that. With another big sigh, he reaches into a drawer and pulls out a key. He tosses it to me and I snatch it out the air, moving eagerly to a wooden cabinet against the wall of the room. Not much security for our family treasures but really, they’re not valuable to anyone else. No robber is going to steal a bunch of books no one wants to read when there’s gold and silver in the house.
I open the doors reverently. There are five shelves inside. Four of them are filled with thick books; some pristine, some fighting against the ravages of time. There’s not a speck of dust to be found. I grab the first book on the highest shelf. It’s so old, the leather is cracking and a small fleck falls off the cover but the pages are fine.
I cradle the book as I blindly fall into the chair next to the cabinet and slowly open it to the first page. The words are messy, almost illegible but I can just make it out. I curl up in the chair, putting the book against my knees as I devour the first page, being just as careful as before as I turn to the next.
Kierra leans over my shoulder. It doesn’t take long before she’s bored, sitting up with a little confused noise. Her nails briefly rake against my scalp before she wanders off, presumably to amuse herself. I’m too absorbed in the words of the Tome ancestors to really pay attention to what’s going on.