We woke with our bodies intertwined. It was quite stimulating but given that Ester had positioned most of her body across my hips the pressure on my bladder meant that getting out of bed was becoming an urgent matter, no matter how pleasant it was to be embraced by two beautiful women.

As I tried to extract myself from the Ladies they worked together to leave me and they sprinted to the bathroom. I was left dancing a jig until a toilet came free.

We washed and headed upstairs to the breakfast tables.

Somehow I was supposed to be pleased because while this was the premier event on the night, we would be limited to one of the outer halls. Therefore we would not be required to interact with the true elites. Given all the rules that I was expected to follow, the conclusion that I came to was that I had to shut my mouth, and not talk because anything that I could reasonably be expected to say could be and most likely would be used to pick a fight that would place us at a greater level of disadvantage.

During these constant instructions, we moved to our rooms. While it could have been a lot more fun than it was, we all showered together. With the girls pulling and prodding my hair, skin, and just about every bit of my anatomy except the fun bits. And when I attempted a sneaky squeeze of any interesting part of their anatomy my hands were quickly slapped. Towards the end, they were getting rather firm about it.

Once washed. Smeared creams and lotions smoothed the skin and caused the marks that had accumulated during combat to fade and disappear. I could not call them scars, they were too clearly temporary than that. Hard-won calluses were buffed away. The only hair left on my body was on the top of my head, and my eyebrows.

Each patch of my body was viewed and every hair removed. From the normally expected ones in my armpit, chest, and face, to the more private areas inside my nose, ear, and worse yet around my nether regions.

“What is the point of all this?”

Lara responded “Status is complex, but one very important aspect is that you cannot show that you work at gaining skills, or experience. We come into the world perfect and must maintain that illusion as much as possible. Because we are at such low levels and have no important titles, the best we can do is to appear perfect in body and form.”

“Classes help, and while you do have an exceptionally rare class, we cannot disclose it. And we would need to have levels in the low hundreds before we could realistically gain status from that.”

“I have a family title, and you the tournament title and are a Hero. None of that is that important. Everyone at the ball will have similar ranked titles. Only time and growth will help.”

“So For Now Shut Up, and Let Ester and Myself Prepare.”

All I could do at this point was sigh and accept what was happening. We moved back into the bedroom/living space.

At some point stands had been moved into our room. My uniform was laid out in all its simple glory, while the dresses that Lara and Ester had to wear were complex yet rather than taking center stage, they enhanced the beauty of each of the girls.

The dressing took several hours, and the girls applied the lightest touches of cosmetics to all three of us. I certainly had no choice about what was happening to me.

Once we were ready, I could not imagine how Lara could be more impressive. Ester was rather more simply dressed and had much more freedom of movement. Lara projected a sense of superiority that I had forgotten about. Ester was a servant, and I was the bodyguard.

“Well we seem as ready as we can be, I guess we head up and see if Elizabeth has any further instructions” I suggested to the girls.

Both Ester and I could move freely, but as impressive as Lara's outfit was, to maintain a level of decorum her movements were restricted.

Yet as our room was near the stairs it did not take long before we were upstairs and in the presence of Elizabeth and Hannah.

“You all look the part, so that is good. And rather surprisingly I did not have to hurry you along.

But given that since it is important that you are seen to be promenading to the event. Being seen, and being seen to be taking your time is a matter of status.

I have arranged a Landau with matching Trakehners to pull the carriage. We cannot use exotics as this will make claims that your records will not support it. I am pushing the limits even with this.

But that is not important since you are ready. I suggest that you leave now. Weapon Master Bertran will act as your hidden support. I suggest using your hidden support will only reduce your status and you have very little to play with. So be careful.”

With that, we exited the barracks and found the Landau, set in the open form. Lara positioned herself in the center of the rear seat, with Ester to her left, and I was positioned on the right. As we entered a driver took the position. It was not surprising that the driver was one of the veteran fighters that were present when I took the beating from Bertran. I noticed that the springs of the carriage had shifted shortly after we had all settled into our place. I was unable to determine that someone else was traveling with us. But it made sense that Weapon Master Bertran was in close support.

The driver clicked and flicked the reins and the horses started to move. Unlike our earlier rapid movement through the various sections of the city. The horses had an unusual high stepping trot that generated a lot of motion of their feet, but the carriage was only moving at a slow walking pace.

We moved at a very steady pace, the people that filled the streets had a lot of time to make a clear passage. Many looked terrified at the presence of what I suspected they took to be members of high society. Now that I think of it, that is exactly what Lara is!

As we moved from street to boulevard, from the military section of the city into the more wealthy suburbs the pace did not vary. What had previously taken a short amount of time, now had taken an hour or more, and I believed that we had only completed two-thirds of the trip.

It had not taken long before I was struggling to sit still. Ester whispered out of the side of her mouth like a ventriloquist

“Remember you are here to be seen, and not heard. You so much as a twitch or say a word. I will find some way to punish you, and that will be the least that will happen. We can not afford to lose any face in this journey.”

I could feel some sympathy in Lara's thoughts, but at the same time, there was a steely determination that things had to be done perfectly.

I just did not understand the rules, and why this slow-motion journey was so important, Yet it clearly was. Underlying the determination and fury, was a sick fear.

Just after we entered the upper city, a body leaped from concealment from a nearby wall. They looked like a ninja but were clad in light tan cloth rather than the expected black. As the person halved the distance there was a thrum and they were cut in half from the crown of their head through the body. The body fell into two pieces, even before I was able to react. A wave of command from Lara froze me in place.

The message was clear that I could not act. I had to just treat it as significant as a pigeon in flight landing in the street.

The wide Boulevards were narrowing as we moved from the new city into the older sections. It did not take that long before the walls that surrounded the houses had narrowed to the point where there was little room on either side for us to pass the foot traffic. I came to realize that the streets we traveled were one way. All the traffic where we were moved only towards the castle, which was now coming closer and closer. From the edges of my vision, I detect others like the first assassin yet there was no movement to attack us.

Occasionally I felt auras of death surrounding what appeared to be various harmless objects such as barrels or shrubbery or most often oddly blank sections of the wall. As we got closer to the castle I stopped detecting any movement. Yet for a time the auras of death became stronger and more common, then they faded away as well.

As we entered the final gate the sense of danger faded further. What replaced it was in some ways worse. All I could feel was how insignificant I was. There were powers and forces that I could feel, Mostly because they just did not care enough to conceal themselves fully from the likes of me.

At that point more than at any other time that I had experienced so far here in this new universe just how insignificant the elites viewed me. I might have potential, as indicated by the interest that the Sphinx clan had demonstrated. But when it came down to it there were powers far beyond my current comprehension. And with that realization, I got a new set of notifications.

Class Level - Insightful leader: +1

Attribute improved - Endurance +3

Attribute improved - Memory +3

Attribute improved - Wisdom +3

Class Grant -

Threat Analysis

Strengthened Awareness

Prophecy Grant

Better Understanding

Slow to Anger

Skill Improved - Basic Improved Senses 10/10

Skill Upgraded - Common Improved Senses 1/20

Skill Improved - Basic Improved Senses 10/10

Skill Upgraded - Common Improved Senses 1/20

Attribute Improved - Awareness + 2

We dismounted from the carriage, Lara strutted forward with me her hammer to the right and Ester her shield to the left. Given how focused Lara was I was only able to decide on one feat before the time ran out. I managed to select Better understanding but was allocated Boosted Anger.

Lara’s confidence and pride in what we had become in such a short time shone like a beacon in the shared landscape of our spirit space. Memories of past humiliations and failures when attending these events leaked across the bridge that connected our spirits.

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Once in the entrance, there were three exits. The one directly in front was clearly for the powerhouses and elites. It leaked flashes of presence and a variety of powers, even considering what must be behind that door caused needles of pain to spike through my head and body.

To the right was a door that radiated power that reminded me of both Hannah and Elizabeth. The third door was a double door and was our entrance. It was unshielded and almost all the auras and presences that I could sense were less or of the same magnitude as ourselves.

The doors were swung open by a pair of servants. As we entered the ballroom Lara was announced, followed by me. Ester was not.

Lara stopped. Turned her head and looked hard at the Master of Ceremonies.

In the quietest of voices “Announce my sister, for she is of the house of the Sphinx and is to be recognized as such.” there was a depth of threat that transcended the possibility that it was an empty threat and it moved into the realm of certainty.

The master then Announced,

“At this time Ester of the house Sphinx, and of the inner sept is recognized by this body as a true sister of Lara of the first family of the house of Sphinx!”

We moved with a steady pace into the hall. I had not expected Lara’s actions, but earlier we had discussed how responsibility would be divided. Lara was the political leader of the team. Ester would run the household, which most importantly included information gathering, while given my class I would attempt to focus on improving the strength of our team.

Ripples of conversation spread across the room. It was clear that we were both the cause and yet at the same time something else was happening. The volume of the general hubbub rapidly increased.

While Lara was a member of the first family it was a large family and her involvement in “the trial of heroes” resulted in significant status impairments, on top of this a number of scions of the imperial sept were present. In less formal settings a general acknowledgment of the status would have been viewed as acceptable, but in this situation, there were protocols that had to be observed.

Lara had already changed things up, by forcing the recognition of Ester. I had not expected it and by the level of glee and sheer excitement that was radiating across the inner bridges of our common mindscape nor had Ester. It was apparent that my belief that I was the dominant partner in this tripartite came to an abrupt realization that things were not quite what I had expected.

Lara had a plan and while it looked like it was significantly different than what had been discussed I was not about to second guess her decisions in this arena. She internally radiated determination and an odd mix of pride and yet a deep sense of inferiority. We approached the first of two clusters of scions, Lara bowed deeply before them recognizing her inferior status, Ester and I each bowed about 200mm deeper. As inner members of Sphinx, we were not forced into prostrating ourselves on the floor as members of lessor septs would have had to do. Ester had expected to have to reduce herself by placing her knee on the floor while bowing parallel to the floor. Her recognition placed her on an equal footing with me. We waited, the pause between our salutation and the acknowledgment by “Diam Rex, Prince of Ice(47) encroached on the boundary of an insult. He quietly nodded and turned back to his conversation.

Since I did not expect the degree of delay it was clear that Lara had spent a noticeable amount of political capital on the promotion of her sister. I came to realize that it must have something to do with the class evolution.

The next grouping that we had to approach was even more problematic as this group was centered around her principal rival in the internal politics of the sept. Gemma Sphinx, was her main rival, until the recent gains that Lara had made she had out-leveled Lara to the point of being able to suppress Lara. The gain in class, levels, and skill now placed Lara on an equal footing, but as Gemma was of the Light faction which held the leadership of the sept this cycle, and given the politics of the acknowledgment the next few moments would depend heavily on what the upper levels of the sept had instructed.

Lara bowed as an equal. I matched Lara as her consort, and Ester bowed deeply but did not present herself as an equal. We waited.

Gemma said “Cousin it is so nice to see you. It was most unexpected to see you participate in the melee. But your team was impressive and the clan is proud of your actions.”

Lara responded politely but internally was seething with anger. “Yes, it has been some months since we interacted.” Ignoring the insult.

With a flicker of intent, Gemma triggered a privacy shield. “There is no need to be so surprised. I was excited to see how you had progressed.” With this, she cast “Inspect”

Rather than resisting the skill Lara embraced the skill and pulled at Gemma’s use of the skill and reinforced it.

Gemma Sphinx (faction - Light)

Flight Master 44

Sun Spirit 11

Body 37+(163)

Agility 36

Dexterity 36

Speed 34

Mind 38+(219)

Control 37

Logic 36

Spirit 45+(249)

Will 42

Feats 11

Lara Sphinx (faction - Dark)

Sword Dancer

Elemental Enchanter

Levels 55

Body 41+(180)

Mind 47+(181)

Spirit 52+(184)

Feats 15

Skills

Unusual Flight

Uncommon Fast Movement

Uncommon Long Bows

Skills

Unusual Mental Awareness

Gemma flinched

She had initiated the status interchange to put Lara in her place, and while her overall attributes were superior to Lara’s that Lara was able to pull more information from the exchange had taken Gemma aback. The change in her main class from an uncommon rank to an unusual ranked class without reaching a milestone had moved Lara to a whole new level.

“Those skills and attributes that you have gained from your bonds will give you a boost now but you must realize that without a solid foundation which is now impossible you will surely fall behind.” sneered Gemma. Not realizing that Lara’s attributes as shown in the status had not been enhanced by the bonds.

Lara simply responded, “Do we have your leave to join the celebrations?”

Gemma responded in the only way that she could. “Certainly, I do believe that Sema is looking for you.” A gleam of calculation glistened in her eyes. What this meant was uncertain, but she was not a foe to ignore.

With that, we started to move through the crowded room towards the buffet table. Navigation should have been very easy but what appeared to be a reasonable straight line soon found us walking at right angles to our intended path of travel. It seemed that these gaps were actually occupied by something that smoothly redirected our travel. Lara had been attempting to avoid a particular group of people. My forced memories identified them as members of one of the secondary families that had recently acquired significant power and were attempting to make the difficult step from one rank of nobility to the next. This was a period of significant risk, as those of the same rank would actively attempt to pull them down while those at risk in the higher rank would be attempting to knock them back to where they belonged.

The history of promotion of rank was full of cautionary tales where families would be knocked back to a lower state than where they had started from, yet the occasional success resulted in such benefits that most families were constantly striving for any advantage.

Lara had been targeted over the years by a particular individual. Unfortunately, Sema had been very successful at causing Lara great embarrassment ever since they had met when they first met during skill classes. While the Sphinx sept did provide training from within its own resources it viewed mixing in the general elite and near-elite families as an important part of that training. Lara’s skillset was focused on presence and the ability to withstand traditional combat. The body politic not being considered as important until one’s skill set reached the low hundreds.

Sema on the other hand was pure politics. Raised to be a useful adjunct to whichever family she was to be married into. Her skills were around gathering and using information. Her ability to manipulate Lara and even Ester had raised her status. Behind her walked a level 49 Noble Duelist, every aspect of this haughty arrogance was well known, He had been trained and taught to be the most lethal duelist under level 50. He had been held at this level for some time now. His father was a senior leader of “The Disciples of Honour” a clan linked to the Imperials.

The rules of dueling are strict and enforced. When there are powers that can cause levels of damage that are not survivable, the weak must follow the rules as defined, and to the letter of the law. It had been hoped that this encounter would not occur but just in case the next few minutes had been rehearsed, the plan called for Lara to control any encounter locking Harold out of the equation.

However, Lara was knocked completely off the script the moment Sema started to speak. I felt the attack that the words engendered, rushing at her defenses, and attempting to overwhelm Lara’s internal defenses. Holes started to appear through her walls. Each previous attack had paved the way, the damage had been hiding in plain sight so to speak.

Lara had been primed for the attack. Her inner defenses had been stripped bare. It made so much more sense how I had all but overwhelmed her during that insane moment when we almost merged. The difference now was that her defenses had improved and gave me time to act. “Defend Defend Defend” This rebuilt the defenses that had been damaged, but by itself was insufficient, I followed it with “Consume Consume Consume”. Which resulted in flaming darts racing from the towers that had formed part of my defensive wall. Including those on the bridge between our islands. This struck the incoming attacks on Lara. Not all were able to be defeated but even as Lara’s defenses risked being overwhelmed

Ester screamed into our minds “Slow Slow Slow”. This delayed the attacks giving Lara time to act.

Lara only knew how to attack. She stepped forward and slowly touched Sema on the cheek. There was no force, just the lightest of slaps. The movement itself was so slow to be near glacial in speed. Yet it was like a glacier and utterly implacable. It that could not be prevented. Somehow Sema is lifted to her toes, spun, and fell to the floor unconscious. She had previously had a speed advantage over Lara, so should have been able to avoid any strike. The blow was solely the effect of ‘Presence’, there was no physical damage done.

“How dare you attack me, you pick, nag nag, For so long I have been constrained in how I could respond. Always you had attacked my spirit and had suppressed my abilities. Well, no more you worm! You are nothing to me!”

Harold responded by stepping between them. “You pond scum. This is a celebration, just because you defeated a few non-consequential creatures does not give you the right to assault a noblewoman.

I am the alpha here, and I take what I claim.”

Lara laughed at him. “The strong punish the weak!”

“Yes you bitch, and I will take you, and once I have finished taking my pleasure, I will have you discarded as the worthless discard that you are.”

Larra continued to laugh at him. “You are not an alpha wolf, you are nothing but a lapdog!”

With that, his face turned red with anger and his hand swept towards Lara’s face. I simply stepped between them and accepted the blow. As I stepped forward I recited in my mind “Immovable, immovable, immovable”. While a skill did not trigger it was enough that I could feel one of the eddies in the body river start to respond.

I stated in the calmest voice that I could manage “I accept. Weaponmaster Bertran will you act as my second.”

From a shadow that could not exist in the middle of the well-lit hall, Bertran appeared. And with the failure of Lara’s original plan, the success of the new improvised actions. Notification appeared.

New Skill - Common Internal Focus Hit 1 / 20

New Skill - Basic Mind control resistance 5 / 10

New Skill - Basic Political Animal 1 / 10

Harold went white as a ghost.

“Weaponmaster, while I would prefer to have this matter expedited, I think that the choice of weapons is the correct choice for me. If you would deal with this individual’s second and arrange a time and place I would appreciate not dealing with anyone with such poor manners.”

Bertran stood silent and radiated impatience.

Harold looked around but with the appearance of the Weaponmaster, his friends had rapidly made themselves scarce. “Uncle Davos, Will you act as my second?” he asked with a nervous tone in his voice.

Another veteran stepped out from the non-existent shadows.