Getting the burst of sparks, I carried out bowls of soup to the table, placing it in front of everyone, but giving Darren and George a warning that it might be a little spicy.
Archie took over the serving of the als from . For the Galvonson, I put two whole cutlets on a plate for Lily, who happily ate them in a couple of bites, while for everyone else I added the cutlets to a plate with so fresh greens.
I ended up only infusing Lily’s, as I saw no real reason to infuse the rest just in case.
Lastly, I placed all the muffins we had prepared in two baskets.
“Sir, please take your seat at the table. I will finish serving these,” Archie said.
Looking it over, everything was ready to go, and Lily had already vanished again, so with a sigh, I made my way into the dining room where everyone was still eating their soup.
The table had shuffled, with Clifford and his wife sitting to my right. Across from them was Luis, and unlike everyone else, those three had not started eating yet. This was likely so etiquette thing I wasn’t sure about.
“Please, eat,” I said as I sat down, Crisplet giving off a burst of sparks as well.
Luis just let out a laugh. “For the dinner in two days, just rember not to eat until the host sits down.”
“Wait, two days?” I asked.
“You didn’t forget, did you?” he asked with a grin.
I just groaned. This was the last political event I needed to attend, and I was not looking forward to it at all.
I saw Liane lean over to Luis, whispering, “He definitely forgot.”
Even Clifford appeared to be holding back a laugh and trying to hide it behind his hand, quickly covering it when I noticed.
“I’m sorry, I haven’t introduced you yet. This is my wife, Valorie,” Clifford said.
“It’s an honour to be here, sir,” she said formally.
“Please, just Trev or Trevor,” I tried to say, but I couldn’t help but notice the smirk on Jen and Liane’s faces at my attempt to avoid it.
The conversation subsided as everyone quietly ate their soup.
“This is fantastic. It’s so warming,” Clifford said to Crisplet, who just excitedly let off so sparks.
“My sister would kill for these buffs,” Luis laughed, taking another big spoonful.
Clifford’s eyes went wide as he undoubtedly checked the buffs himself, but he said nothing.
Before I knew it, the bowls were being cleared while everyone was complinting Crisplet, who was currently puffing himself up and clearly posing, but I couldn’t bla him. I was incredibly proud that he was now cooking for himself.
“I rember these! They are great,” Luis said excitedly.
“What is it?” Clifford asked, looking over.
“They are breaded Galvonson cutlets,” I said.
“Galvonson?” Clifford asked.
“Giant angry birds that tried to kill us.”
There was a crunch as everyone cut into their cutlets, the at was still tender and juicy, while the crumb on the outside stayed crisp, Clifford and his wife both seed to enjoy the al, even if they didn’t seem entirely comfortable at the table. I caught the tail end of a conversation Hari was having with Milo.
“…might have a job heading north in a month.”
I couldn’t help but feel excited by that! I had been itching to get back on the road again and go back to adventuring. It was nice having a house as large as this, but I felt trapped. But it also ant I would really need to focus on getting enough supplies for Micca so that she’d be sorted for the ti we were away.
This news imdiately lifted my spirits.
Turning to Clifford, I asked, “Clifford, what led you to go into statue making?”
“Oh, well, I used to work as a stonemason at a quarry near the southern cliffs, but when I retired from that, I took up stone carving since I already had the skills for it,” he explained.
“That’s amazing. Your statues were really good. That cat by the fireplace is in my room right now,” I said, as Crisplet let off a burst of sparks.
“You’re too kind, honestly.” He waved it away.
“Luis, who does your statues at the palace? I saw you had a couple there,” I asked.
Luis shrugged. “Honestly, no idea. They are all very old at this point, older than I am, that’s for sure.”
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“You should hire Clifford to make one! I can’t be the only person to have high-quality statues, after all. It’s not right that a manor is showing up the palace,” I said excitedly, and Crisplet burst into the biggest shower of sparks yet.
Luis seed to be in thought, while Clifford was waving it off.
“It’s fine, sir. I couldn’t make a tree of fire like that anyway,” Clifford said.
“I’ll speak to my father. It’s actually a good idea!” Luis said between bites.
“If it’s in the next month, maybe you could take Crisplet with you and you could both make sothing together!” I laughed.
Clearly, though, Crisplet didn’t see that as a joke, but rather as the only option, because he imdiately turned to Clifford to get the response.
“I’d love to make one with you. I don’t know how that would work, though, or if I’m good enough for the palace,” Clifford shook his head.
“Nonsense. If Trev and Crisplet vouch for you, that’s good enough for ,” Luis laughed.
It looked like Clifford didn’t know what to say, but Crisplet clearly took it as a yes, giving a large burst of sparks. I really didn’t know how they could work together on sothing. It was likely that they couldn’t. Perhaps when we returned, though, Crisplet could add a fiery touch to it.
I saw Clifford’s wife encouraging him as well.
“Very well. If you request it, sir, I would be honoured,” Clifford responded, bowing his head.
“This is helpful, because I was going to see if you’d be open to offering Crisplet so lessons? He’s taught himself so far, and other than Milo, who makes buildings out of stone, I’d be happy to pay, of course!” I asked.
It would only be fair if I got help with my passions that Crisplet could get help with his.
“I’d happily teach him so tricks I’ve learned over the years. No need to pay . That statue was enough,” Clifford tried to say.
“Nonsense. I’ll sort it out, Trev,” Milo said from across the table.
“Yeah, that statue was a gift, not a paynt,” I added.
The plates were taken away, and Luis was dragged into a conversation with Darren and George at the end of the table as the muffins were brought out. They were all mixed with different fruits, and none were left. Even Clifford had opened up and started talking to Hari and Milo.
But all good things have to co to an end, as Clifford and Valorie stood up, bowing deeply. “Thank you for the invitation to this fantastic al. It was a pleasure to et you all.”
“Thank you so much for coming, and thank you for being so kind to Crisplet,” I replied.
Walking them to the door, the front yard was lit in the warm glow of the statue, with the carriage already waiting. I guessed Archie had seen this occurring and prepared it again.
“You don’t need to. We can walk. You’ve done so much already,” Clifford tried to protest.
“Nonsense. Please take it wherever you need to go in the city,” I smiled.
Crisplet let off a burst of sparks as well, having co out to see them off.
They soon entered the carriage as we waved them off, Crisplet expressing happiness, which left feeling in a great mood.
Heading back inside, I was t by Sylverith, who was standing just inside the doorway.
“Trevor, dear, could you join for a mont in the office?”
“Of course,” I said, following her as she led the way.
As soon as she entered, she turned to before we sat down.
“With your group leaving soon, I need to tell you about the runes on the armour and your knife. First is the one you know: self-repair. The second one you saw in action: this armour will fit to your body size. Now, the special ones. This is made of two types of dragon scales, though the storm ones are hidden. They were unsightly,” Sylverith began.
She had remove the jacket that was over the top.
“So it will provide you with so lightning resistance. However, my favourite rune is right here.” She pointed to the side of the armour just by my right hip.
I spotted a small, round circle only the size of my finger, and if she hadn’t pointed it out, I’m not sure I would have noticed it.
“When you activate this rune in a forest, it will provide you with temporary stealth. This will break if you move too quickly or attack. It’s best if you learn to use it from Lily or Liane. Finally, the last one, which might be the most important, is activated when you are in mortal danger, much like that feather you have, and it will provide you a barrier for three hours that will stop most incoming damage,” she explained.
“That’s incredible,” I muttered.
“Just so you know, it is a one-ti use, and I can’t put it back on this armour again. Now get your knife out,” she smiled.
Next, I pulled out the knife, my mind still racing at yet another safety net in case I was in danger, and whether Lily was responsible for it.
“So, two you already know: sharpness and self-repair. This one here at the base of the handle will provide a slip-free surface, so no amount of blood or oil will cause you to lose grip. And last, sothing that I am very proud of: this small one here at the top of the blade will allow you to change the blade to the shape and size you need. However, you can’t gain extra tal or lose it,” she explained.
I rested my finger on the spot, and the blade slowly grew into a long, thin knife, just like Geo used for filleting. Next, I tried to make it tiny, like what Martin used for turning, but it couldn’t quite get that small.
“Thank you so much. These are the best!” I exclaid happily.
“On a personal note, young Trevor, do be careful. My daughter is miserable when she is sulking, and I suspect she’ll be sulking for a very long ti if sothing were to happen to you. Also, keep that scarf close by,” she winked.
“Thanks, Sylverith. You ntioned there are the storm scales on the chest, too? Where?”
Sylverith just chuckled. “Hidden. Now go. They are waiting for you in the dining room.”
Leaving the office, I wondered who was waiting for . Did Luis need to speak with ? I thought he was going to train with the others outside.
When I entered, though, the whole team was there, all staring at .
“I thought you were just walking them out. What took so long?” Jen asked.
“Sylverith,” I said simply.
“Ah, well, take a seat, then. We have news,” Hari said happily.
I rushed over, knowing what this news was going to be, but wanting to hear it all the sa.
“We have good news and bad news. The good news, we have a job to leave the city in five weeks, unless sothing happens. We’ll be escorting a caravan to Torlin, which is a trading site that is on the road to Elarith Vale,” Hari said.
“And the bad news?” I asked.
“You have a dinner to prepare for in two days. There will be a lot of people who try to talk to you, to curry favour from you, so Milo is going to teach you what to say. I’m going to teach you how to act,” Hari said with a grin.
"I already did training!" I tried to protest.
"Not enough! now let's go." Milo instructed
I just let out a groan. This is the last thing I wanted to spend the rest of my night doing.
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