"They're late," Aella sighed, staring at the pot simmering over the fading flames.
"We should probably eat." Mira walked into the kitchen with Rey and Ray behind her.
"I'm sure Master would spend the night with Merida," Rey added, and Ray nodded after her.
"Isdis and Eris aren't here, and Roberta already left a while ago," Aella turned toward the pot, "You might be right,"
Waiting for Arad and Merida's return didn't make sense, so they decided to eat first. The night is still long, but they still have a ton of work tomorrow.
They quickly set the dinner table and started eating, "I hope Arad doesn't forget about the logs. We need them." Mira sighed, stirring her bowl and feeling exhausted just by thinking about how much work awaits her. "I don't want to work on it. It's boring..."
"Lady Mira hates any stale work," Rey looked at her.
"You can't play with?things that are normalized," Mira replied with a sad face.?The making of siege weapons or the castle's main drawbridge?wasn't something she could put a flare on.?They are repetitive, boring jobs for a craftsman.
"But it's important." Aella looked at her, "You won't be working alone either. You'll be directing a group of carpenters."
"That's the boring part to me." Mira stared at her?with a sad face, "I'll have my hands full giving orders to everyone that I would barely get time to lift a hammer and work."
"It can't be helped." Ray looked at Mira, "Lady Mira, you're the most talented carpenter we could find. It'll be faster and more efficient to have you in a leading role?directing?everyone and?making full use of?your talent and knowledge."
"Talent, you say..." Mira lifted a spoonful of soup and stared at it, "I'm sure my talent isn't in directing people..."
"Look around," Aella smiled, tapping a finger on the table, "You almost made this entire house. And you didn't do it alone. You were directing Bob and the other builders."
"Lady Aella is right," Ray nodded, "Don't stress it out and get it done. It'll only be a few days of work at most."
"You're?going to?the University of the Arts in a few weeks. You won't be staying for long anyway." Rey added.
"The University of the Arts...do they teach creation magic? Spells to help with working wood or still?" Mira stared at the twins, "You must know."
"Elemental creation magic is a thing, but I've never heard of any magic that directly manipulates wood." Rey started thinking.
"Plant magic is a thing...but that isn't wood, it's living veins and roots..." Ray scratched her head.
"There are spells that control objects like telekinesis. You might be able to learn and cast them to use more than one tool at a time." Aella stared at Mira with a grin, "Just?imagine,?four hammers swinging at the same time as you cut wood with a saw, all using your mind and magic."
"It'll be fun." Mira smiled, "Fine,?it's two weeks that'll?end quickly."
"But..." Rey looked at the door, "Master is taking his time with Merida."
"I hope she doesn't get hurt.?He?can be a bit rough," Ray looked at Aella, "What do you think?"
"I don't know. Beside Eris, she's the most durable of us." Aella started thinking, "I say she'll last for an hour at most."
"We've watched Master with Her Highness Isdis. We can say she starts getting tired in a quarter-hour at most." Rey and Ray nodded as they looked at each other.
"You two are watching her them?" Mira stared at them with a tired face. "You don't watch us, do you?"
"We only guard lady Isdis as her personal maids. Even though she keeps kicking us out," Rey mumbled.
"Master locked the keyholes on the doors, but we found a crack that we can peep through," Ray looked at Mira, "You know how massive Master is. We can't risk her getting harmed, even by mistake. She's a fragile bard?after?all. She's nowhere near as flexible as lady Aella or durable as Eris."
"It isn't that bad," Mira sighed, "But I can't be the one to speak.?I've got pregnant pretty?quick, so he's been?far?gentler with me, and we aren't having that many sessions either."?She?looked at the maids with a smile, "Show me that peeping crack later..."?She thought, ^I'll block it with a wooden plank, so they can't keep looking.^
"It's not a problem with Arad," Aella looked at them, "It's a problem with us. He's too strong for us,"
"The stronger someone gets, the harder it becomes to control their strength at lower levels," Mira remembered how many pieces of furniture and utensils Arad?destroyed?by mistake.
"If Eris and Merida could both withstand his strength. We might spend less morning barely able to walk," Aella looked at them?with a?serious?face.
"As we told Lady Isdis," Rey looked at Aella, "We are always here to help..."
"You just want a turn, don't you? Forget it," Aella stared at them.
"Tina also suggested it," Mira stared at them, "But we agreed on a NO."
"Lady Aella," Tina walked downstairs, "You started eating without me?"
Ray stared at her. "We maids don't complain."
"She isn't a maid," Mira smacked Ray on the head with a chop, "Don't tease her."
Tina giggled, "I finished cleaning. Tomorrowitis your turn." She stared at Ray with a grin.
"No, it's sister's turn." Ray pointed at Rey, "I cleaned yesterday."
"It mattersnot,you cook, and I'll clean," Aella stared at them, "This isn't a big house, but it'll get bigger in the future."
She turned and stared at the window, "Timeflies by.NowwithZephyr gone, I doubt we can live longer in this house without any magical protection."
"The great wind spirit."
"I bet a lot of rogue spirits would come after me for the title of the queen." Aella looked at them, "And those who never considered attacking us due to Zephyr's presence would get bold. Arad can't be with us all thetime. Merida now fulfils that role."
"The demon lord of fungus," Mira mumbled, "No monster would dare attack us directly while she's around.It was provenwith Alony's attack,"
"Demon lord?" Rey looked at Aella, "Wasn't she a queen of fungus?"
"We don't know, it's a fungus. Queen, king, or lord, it doesn't matter. What matters is that it considers Merida like its mother," Aella looked at the ceiling. "I need to master Zephyr's power as soon as possible to protect the house in Arad's absence."
"You're late..." A deep voice came from behind Mira as a large hand landed on her head, "This one is pregnant with Arad's child, isn't she?" A massive muscular man stood behind her, oozing enough magic to paralyze everyone.
^Move! Move!^ Aella growled, circulating her magic around her body as fast as she could, trying to break free of the time-
binding spell the man was emitting.
"I'm a silver dragonwho hasa tiny problem with your husbandArad. Mind coming with me for a while?" The man asked. He's the one who attacked Arad in the capital.
The silver dragon blinked, and so did Aella. She could feel someone standing behind her, and judging by the sound, it must be Arad.
Mira's eyes opened wide as she saw theold manwith a mustache.
"Who are you?" The silver dragon gasped.
"Hemph, It's my question," Sebas replied, his shirt ripping apart as his muscles expanded. "I'm lord Arad's butler and was specifically instructed to rip and tear anyone who dared step in the house uninvited."
Thud! A hand landed on the silver dragon's head. And Aella could see him, Gojostandingbehind the silver dragon.
"Touching my brother's wife. You don't seem to value your life, do you." Gojo put even more strength into his palm, squeezing the dragon's head.
The silver dragon has frozen the girls with a faint application of time-stop magic, but Gojo and Sebaswhoate one of Arad'sscaleswere unaffected, and it only took them a fraction of a second to respond.
"You're master's brother, so I'll allow your uninvited entry to the house." Sebas stared at Gojo.
"I saved your life, remember, wyrmling eater monkey. I'm sure I took a slap from Mother for doing that," Gojosighed,as he grabbed the silver dragon's wrist, pulling his hand away from Mira. "That's my brother's wife and nephew." while stillholding a casual conversationwith Sebas.
"You got what you deserved. We're dangerous to dragons, more than you think." Sebas replied.
"For real, I felt like a kid bringing a raccoon home."
"Don't compare me to those trash pandas."
"DIE!" The silver dragon shouted, spinning around with a fist toward Gojo's face.
The silver dragonfound himself standingin an empty wasteland of stone and dust, "The southern desert?"
Gojo sat on a stone peak as he watched Sebas approach the silver dragon, "Sebas, I'll sit here and watch. You're supposed to be Arad's butler. Show us what you can do."