I had done it. I had become the perfect son. I not only made the sick maids soup, I cleaned up, washed the dashes with water I drew from the well myself. I mopped the floors with vinegar, wiped every counter clean. I even cleaned up the puke. The look on Matilda’s face was priceless and granny Eleonore got tears in her eyes and started praying to a god, like I’d finally become what she always believed I could be.

I had come back from work around 10 PM most likely and then had cooked and cleaned for 3 hours maybe. No one except the chief, Trent, and other important people one could tell the time, as clocks were seen as an expensive luxury few could afford.

I was angry. Why, one might ask?

Trent didn’t come home. I stayed up till sunrise waiting for that fool. He was supposed to acknowledge how hard I’d been working and change his mind about me. He was supposed to say, “You did all that and you waited for me to come home? You’re incredible!”

So why wasn’t he back?

As the sun slowly rose over the hills and the rays poured in through the window, I regretted everything. I had work soon.

I’d have to tell Arthur I couldn’t come in today. Especially not without Trent coming home. Like a good son, I was worried and couldn’t fall asleep. And I spent the entire day searching for him.

As for what I was actually about to do, I went to spy on the chief’s house.

It took a while to get there, as I hid behind bushes, avoided busy trails, and especially anywhere close to Arthur’s farm. But I got there.

Damn.

Through the window, I saw the chief’s wife was reading their daughter a book, with the child on her lap. I hadn’t seen her face very well, so I wasn’t ready for what I saw when I knocked on the door. A woman in her late twenties, wavy blonde hair, cherub face, and a rocking body.

She’s a babe!

A MILF for sure. Why did the hottest girl in the village have to be married to that prick?

Well, he is the chief. I guess that has its perks.

“Umm, can I help you, Alster? And please do not stare at a lady. It’s impolite.”

I took my eyes off her tits for a moment and asked her if the chief was home.

“No, he isn’t. I think he’s still with your father.”

I couldn’t help but think she sounded very annoyed.

“Is everything alright, miss?”

“Hmph. Well since you’re the cause of this trouble, I am not exactly happy to see you.”

I was the cause? Cause of what?

As I probed her for answers, she explained that because the Holy Knights of the Margrave had been involved in escorting me back, the local lord had summoned the chief and his father. All infractions were reported as part of an ongoing investigation to find a group of thugs that were active around the villages, and my actions had earned the local lord a reprimand from the Margrave for improperly managing his territory. And thus, Trent and the chief were probably getting chewed out by the lord.

“But all I did was sneak out at night. Why is that such a big deal?”

She sighed and shot me dagger-like eyes. “The curfew in place right now forbids anyone without the lord’s permission from being out at night, so the knights can find the perpetrators more quickly. And you were the first in all the lord’s villages to break it.”

“My fault…. I see….”

Oh.

That means Trent is going to be even more furious when he returns. He won’t care about everything I did. Is this even worth it?

I had to go with plan B. I gulped. Let’s hope this works.

First, I stared down at the ground with a moment of silence. The frown on my face was delicate, with the hint that I was troubled and contemplating something. “Miss, I… I know I’ve done some terrible things. You see, my ma passed away and I just gave in to these terrible feelings. I wanted revenge, you know? Against what I don’t know. The world? For taking her away.”

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I looked up to see that her face had softened, if only a little.

“I waited for Trent to come. You can probably see the bags under my eyes. I didn’t sleep, just waited. I wanted him to see how I cleaned up our house and took care of the maids while they were sick. I just… want to make up for everything I’ve done.”

With a convincing sincerity in my eyes, she was done. A small trickle of tears were coming out of her eyes and she started hugging me as if I were her own son. It hurt to be seen that way by someone I wanted to bang.

Stay strong.

“Oh, Alster. Well, if you really mean it, I’m sure your father won’t be too hard on you when he returns. I believe he and Callum will be back early evening.”

My eyes shot up. The two most important people in the village were gone at present. I had an idea.

“Miss, I can’t thank you enough for those kind words. A big weight is off my shoulders. I peeked for a bit as I was passing the window and noticed you were reading a book to your daughter. Would you let me clean and polish your home? I’ve been practicing, and I’m confident I can leave it sparkling. I feel I’ve caused the chief a lot of trouble. Please allow me this to make it up to him.”

She cupped her mouth. “You want to—oh! if Ella could only see you now! She’d be very proud. I appreciate the sentiment, but we already have maids."

“Then, please, give them a day off. Allow me to earn the chief’s forgiveness with my own two hands.”

She smiled. “Very well, Alster. Come in.”

And so I gained access to the premises.

The little girl hid behind a maid as I walked in. The chief’s three maids had heard everything I’d said. They insisted on helping me, but I said I would handle everything. I only wanted to know where the cleaning supplies were.

“Well, at least let us handle today’s dinner. Will you be staying with us this evening?”

I shook my head. “Thank you, but I would really like to welcome my father when he comes home.”

Their eyes were glowing. I could tell I’d taken their breath away.

The chief’s house was by far the most spacious I’d seen in the village. Back in America, it would be seen as an upper-middle class deluxe. A total of six rooms, three upstairs and three downstairs, a large kitchen, and two washrooms. No surprise, there wasn’t any indoor plumbing so no toilets or showers, just a mirror and a bucket that would be emptied by the maids at the end of each day.

After being guided to the supply closet upstairs, I took out the mops, vinegar, and other neat stuff and got work. The maids supervised my work for a few minutes to make sure I knew what I was doing. When they were satisfied, they went back to their respective rooms.

I cleaned up every room in the first floor, then worked my way to the second floor, leaving the chief’s for last. Finally, it was time.

I called out to the missus downstairs. “Miss, do you mind if I also dust this room as well? It’ll take a little longer, but I think you and the chief will enjoy better air quality.”

“Alright. Just be careful not to break anything, okay?’

And so I gained access to the chief’s room.

My first impression was that of almost being back home. A large king-sized bed, a dresser, a mahogany desk made by first-rate craftsmen, various knick-knacks on shelves and tables including some rusty shears and other tools the chief probably kept as a memento. There was a juvenile drawing, likely made by the daughter, of the chief and his wife with the girl in the middle all holding hands.

If the chief was the kind of person I thought he was, it had to be in here. The ticket to rising up in this world.

Just where are you hiding that spellcard?

I began my search. I checked inside every cabinet, between every gap, under his bed, all under the guise of cleaning. I spent over an hour. There was no sign of it. Of course, I also took the time to clean so I appeared to be doing something productive. I checked the washrooms. Every nook and cranny. The chief could have felt suspicious leaving it in the room, so he might have opted for somewhere less obvious.

Nothing.

I returned to the room, deciding to check one more time under the bed before giving up.

Just as I was losing hope the first maid came in to check on me.

“Alster, what are you doing under the bed?”

I instinctively tried to look up and hit my head against the wooden frame.

Ow!

“I—you wouldn’t believe how much dust can get trapped under the bed.”

“Oh, I know. Frankly, we never clean it as well as we could for that very reason. I am so thankful you’re here.”

I laughed. “Yes, it’ll take me some more time. You can inspect it after I’m done.”

“Just be careful, okay? There are some hollow floorboards. I wouldn’t be surprised if rats lived under there.”

She walked out.

Hollow floorboards?

I immediately got back into position and started knocking on the wood. They all seemed dense when I knocked on them.

Here it is!

One not too far from the right edge of the bed was tight and didn’t stick out at all. Anyone would miss it. I sunk my nails at the edges and pulled it with all my might. It gave in.

Underneath was a small space taken up by a bunch of feathers. I scrambled through them. At the very bottom was not one, but two cards of glass.

I could feel my heart racing.

They looked exactly like what the knight guy was holding, but were they real? What if they were unpowered replicas, or just imitations?

My fear was soon proven unfounded. As I held up the first one, a picture and words appeared inscribed on it. The drawing was of a river and the title was Card of Water.

[The wielder of this card may call forth torrents of water as they see fit.]

The second was Card of General Skill Mastery.

[The wielder of this card learns physical skills at a faster rate.]

A bout of laughter started growing from my belly.

I’ve done it.

The chief’s spellcards are mine.