Anders, together with Nemina, and Lucas went to the cinema to inspect the situation there. Normally, Devon and Colin would follow them. Colin acted as Anders's errand boy and Devon as his personal bodyguard, but since all of them had been confined in the suite for several hours, he allowed them their freedom for the rest of the day.
Of course, no one would fault them for not opening the theater since it was already late in the day. While they were heading towards the cinema, Anders thought of the fact that his family always seemed to be in danger but on second thought, everyone from Rendindura was always in danger because of the undead monsters.
He was almost thankful that his wife was not there anymore to learn what happened to their beloved country. In a short amount of time, the Undead Coalition managed to conquer a huge part of the continent and more than likely, their previous home was now covered in undead monsters.
For a brief moment, Anders muttered a brief prayer to the divines for his neighbors since there was a good chance that they were now gone. The only reason their family managed to escape was because of his son’s mysterious power.
Ever since Anton woke up as a powerful wizard, their luck changed. Even now, every time Anders looked in the mirror, he couldn’t believe that a young man was looking back. He looked barely past thirty and wondered how his wife would have looked if she had been there with him.
He knew what his reaction would be since Anders saw Nemina’s and Lucas’s behavior. They shamelessly acted like young husband and wife.
When they arrived at the theater, they entered it and saw that their new employees were there. They briefly had a meeting with them and after that, Nemina and Lucas separated from him. Since Anders had nothing to do and it was rare for him to have some time alone he decided to visit the bar that was supposed to have performances from elite bards and other entertainers.
“I think it’s called the Patron Bar,” Anders thought.
Anders arrived at the bar after a sailor guided him and when he entered, the bar was full and he had to wait for at least fifteen minutes before a seat opened. He had to join three young women on their seat which was amenable enough to let a stranger join their table.
“Good afternoon, Ladies. I’m Anders Sunder,” Anders still felt weird about having a last name since he wasn’t used to having one.
The only reason his family had the honor of receiving a last name was because of his son. He wondered why Anton chose the last name “Sunder”.
The three ladies welcomed him especially when they heard that Anders had a last name since only nobles had last names. They introduced themselves as Belue, Norma, and Selena and he didn’t bother to memorize their complicated and long last names. He ordered a drink from the waiter and asked the ladies at the table if they wanted some drinks and they allowed him to order for them.
Soon, a bard came to the stage and Anders was highly impressed at the bard’s beautiful voice but he still thought that his son’s voice was better.
“My son’s voice is better,” Anders said softly after the bard had finished.
“Oh, your son’s training to become a bard?” One of the ladies named Belue asked.
“I’m sorry. My son is a wizard, not a bard, and a powerful wizard at that. It’s just that he could also play the lute and sing,” Anders said proudly.
“A wizard, not an apprentice? How old is your son If I may ask?” Selena asked.
Anders told the ladies that Anton was seventeen.
“You must have been very young when you had your son,” Norma commented.
“I was already in my late twenties when my wife had our eldest. She passed away soon after she gave birth to our second child.”
The three ladies stared at him and Anders wondered why.
“That can’t be! You look like you’re only in your late twenties now! How can you have a son that’s already seventeen years old when you had him when you were in your late twenties?” The girl named Selena said.
Anders was startled since he thought that he looked like he was in his mid-thirties not late twenties.
“I’m sorry ladies but I’m already entering my late forties,” Anders told the girls.
The three ladies gasped when they heard his age.
“You look like you’re only three to four years older than us and all of us are only in our mid-twenties! I didn’t expect you to be so…old! Are you a wizard?” Belue asked but the other two girls scolded her when they heard her telling Anders that he was old but Anders just smiled.
“No, I’m a merchant. I look because of my son’s magic. As I’ve said, my son is extraordinarily powerful,” Anders boasted.
Soon, they had to stop speaking since a lovely woman bard came up on stage and started her performance. Looking at the bard who was wearing very revealing clothes, Anders felt hot. One of the disadvantages of becoming young again because of Anton’s magic water was his blood became hot again. He even thought of going to the red light district to vent but he was embarrassed. He did not know how his children would react if they knew that their father was visiting ladies of the night, especially Anna. He knew that Anton would probably understand but Anna would be confused.
Thankfully, the bard who was wearing very revealing clothes concluded her performance and left.
“Sir, If I may ask a possible offensive question, please do forgive me. Do you only look young or is your body truly becoming young,” Norma asked.
Anders paused a bit and thought about whether he should answer the ladies’ questions. He didn’t know them at all and he had been very free with sharing information with them. The only excuse that he could think of was that the three ladies were exceptionally beautiful and because of his younger body’s blood acting up, he found out that he was becoming susceptible to pretty girls’ flatteries. He scolded himself and made a vow to himself to be cautious with his behavior. He still answered the lady’s question though.
“It’s a true youth spell and not just an appearance spell and this is based on how I feel. Not only that, my son’s spell also made my daughter’s skill pale and flawless and her hair became lighter and more luxurious. Unfortunately, the spell that my son is using is not a one-time thing and is a result of long-time exposure to his magic so we couldn’t sell it, or else, based on the interest of most people who became aware of this spell, we would have been one of the richest family in Rendindura.”
Anders didn’t mention that his son only became a mage for just a short time and they had spent the majority of their time running.
Since Anders showed that he didn’t want to continue with the topic of the youth spell, the ladies didn’t continue asking and he was sure that this was only because the ladies were very young and the youth spell wasn’t that important to them yet. The ladies did talk to him more, and they even asked about the location of his suite, which he readily provided since he thought that this would allow his son to encounter more friends.
The ladies looked rich and possibly powerful and Anders wasn’t averse to their family to form more powerful connections just like what his son did with his four new friends from New Drennor.