Chapter 85 My Fair Lady,

  Receiving a telepathic communication from Shamesh had been… interesting. Something about him just seemed… off. Margaret wasn’t sure what exactly had been going on while the Master and Mistress were away, but she doubted that it was all well and good. The simple fact that they required new clothes was enough to worry Margaret but the addition of the priceless clothes for the King and Queen of Altia was just plain shocking. What made everything even more strange was the fact that the person coming to retrieve the gifts for the royals was someone that she had never heard of before. Shamesh hadn’t been entirely helpful either as all he could tell her was that apparently he was a professor. Shamesh had also informed her that everything was to be kept as secret as possible. Eventually the right, or wrong, people were going to find out but apparently Isaac wanted to push that time back as far as possible.

  Margaret had done her duty, within the two hour time frame that she was given, with only Jessica Silverstrand being informed directly. Isaac had told Shamesh, who told Margaret, who told Jessica, that Sera and Izen could be told but absolutely no one else. Margaret did her best to relay everything that she knew to Jessica but it was clear that the head maid was just as confused as Jessica was so she simply capitulated.

  When the time arrived, Margaret was left waiting in their entry sitting room until the professor arrived. It took about half an hour longer than Shamesh had informed her, he had low balled her so she would be ready in time and not make the professor wait, which was a nice but stressful break in the early evening. When a man in a brown cloak stopped in front of the manor, Margaret was instantly aware that the man that her Master and Mistress had sent was not someone that was used to skulking about. It might’ve been better to have James meet the man somewhere less conspicuous and just hand off the bag instead of having the old man playing drug runner.

  Margaret walked out and gave the man a curtsy. “Greetings, Sir, and be welcomed to the V’Nova Wexler Manor.” She told the man and got the gate and then the door for him. He had merely given her a nod like he was afraid to speak out loud lest someone remember his voice. Once they were inside, and the door was closed behind him, Margaret gestured to a pair of slippers that were set aside for guests and cleaned between every use. “Please, come in.” She said as she slipped out of her ‘outside slippers’ and into her ‘inside slippers’. When the old man didn’t move, Margaret just sighed. “You may speak here, Professor Gnosis, we have been expecting you and this location is as secure as the home of our Duke and Duchess.”

  “Ah, I see, thank you.” Professor Gnosis replied and gave her a respectful bow. “I would love to partake in your hospitality but I must be on my way. I was instructed not to dally, you see.”

  “I do.” Margaret replied and grabbed the Bottomless Bag with the things that Isaac had requested through Shamesh. “This should contain everything that they requested.” She explained. She then wrapped a cookie in a napkin and handed it to the professor along with the Bottomless Bag. “For the road.” She told him with a smile.

  “Thank you, my fair lady, I shall have to return your napkin to you at a later date.” He told her with another respectful bow as he took the bag and cookie.

  “Margaret.” She introduced herself. “And you know where to find me, if you are ever in the area.” She gave him another smile, one that if he had been a bit sharper on the uptake might’ve informed him that she didn’t see sixty as that old.

  “Indeed.” The professor replied and half turned to leave. “You wouldn’t happen to know what is in here, would you?” He asked Margaret with as much obvious curiosity as made sense but not so much as to seem exaggerated.

  “I do.” Margaret replied. “Now, m’lord, I believe you said that you were instructed ‘not to dally’?”

  You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

  Professor Gnosis got that hint and gave her another bow in farewell. “Indeed.” He agreed. “Farewell, Miss Margaret.” He told her and looked like he was about to start to cast a spell.

  “Wait.” She stopped him. “Not only will that not work, but because you are not recognized by the enchantress who built and maintains the wards, you will probably never be seen again if you cast a teleportation spell within the building, probably not in the front yard either.” She warned him.

  The professor paled and gave her another thanks and bow. It was clear that even though he felt plenty of wards around, he did not feel the ones that Jala had specifically hidden. Those were the really nasty ones and the ones that would hijack someone’s teleportation to a location that Margaret wasn’t sure of. The worst part was that she couldn’t get anyone to check the wards for her because not only would Jala know, but Margaret had no idea which wards were responsible.

  After the professor left, Margaret told the girls that they could return to the ground floor. She had sent the children upstairs just in case the newcomer was not someone that she wanted around her children but after meeting the overly polite older gentleman, Margaret was positive that he was the kind of man who was good with children, but only those with comprehensible speech. He was a teacher through his core and gave off the air of someone who, when left alone with a child for any length of time, would somehow get the child positively obsessed with Kingsmen or some other highly mentally stimulating old game.

  “He looked nice.” Martha said with a self-assured nod.

  Margaret narrowed her eyes on her youngest daughter. “What do you mean he ‘looked nice’? Young lady, were you watching him?” She demanded.

  “Yep.” Martha replied with absolutely no shame.

  Margaret could only sigh and rub her temples. “Well, all’s well that ends well.” She shook her head. “I hope Isaac, Lenna, and Shamesh are alright.” She added to herself in a whisper. Margaret was not one who would use her patron’s names while working, however, she had grown to care deeply for the newlyweds who took them in even before they had been married. To start a family with what was left of one living under the same roof must have been awkward, but Isaac, Lenna, and Shamesh never once made them feel like they were unwelcome or being a third horse. Maybe one day, when she was no longer basically owned by the duo, she could even call them her friends. She was also very distinctly aware of how Isaac had set them up for an easy life and that Lenna had taken them in as a charity case, even if Isaac would deny it at every turn. It all amounted to Margaret’s concern for Isaac, Lenna, and Shamesh to be very genuine for them as people, and not as her and her daughters’ bosses and their livelihood.

  ‘Please let them come back safe and all in one piece.’ Margaret prayed to Lua and then again to Halya. She wasn’t sure if Halya actually cared about Isaac and Lenna at all but she was positive that Lua did. Maybe her prayer would make keeping the duo alive just a little easier for Lua the next time the divinity had to step in. Margaret hoped so anyway.

  —

  While Professor Gnosis was finishing up his lesson, using the teleportation station, and then meeting a rather interesting person to retrieve the object of his mission, Isaac and Lenna were finishing their tour. There were only two buildings left and they were as plain and solid as they had expected. What they hadn’t expected was for the head of the Altesia Warrior Academy to personally leave his office to greet them. The man was old, at least in his eighties and entirely human. He was already on the way out of his position and had been looking for someone from the staff to take his place. That meant that anything ‘crazy’ that he did could be played off as his age but also still had to be followed through by his successor because he still held the title. What that culminated in was Isaac and Lenna receiving not one, but three scholarships.

  Each scholarship was for two years, which was the basic program, but apparently they could be split if the duo had two children in school at the same time with the same surname in order to set them both up for officer training on top of their regular warrior training. This would allow the V’Nova Wexler duo to send a pair of students, with the same surname, through basic warrior’s and officer’s school, or just three separate individuals at any time through the basic course for free.

  ‘Why did the principal give the duo not one, not two, but three scholarships?’ one might ask. Well, it turned out that he had heard about everything that had happened almost immediately after the duo’s tour had resumed and had a reason for each.

  “The first is as an apology for the rudeness of my staff.” The positively ancient looking, well tanned and heavily wrinkled, bald man began. “The second is for turning it into a teaching moment for both my staff and students. And the third is because I have never met a more beautiful pair of future parents in my entire life.”

  Isaac could only chuckle and accept the offering with grace. “Thank you, Headmaster, it has been a treat to witness and experience your academy.” After that, the duo bid Lucius goodbye and left to wait for Professor Gnosis to do his job and then meet them for dinner. Which meant that Isaac and Lenna could go back to their hotel room and change into something Lenna wasn’t afraid of warping if she sat down or leaned against a wall.

  Amaranth Serentia V'Nova Wexler