’And luck, lots of luck, having you as parents and unintentionally receiving from you the strongest beast...’
His father opened his mouth, closed it, then pointed toward a side wing courtyard. "And that is?"
"Stables," Ren said. "For training tars with transportation beasts."
"How many employees with transportation beasts do we have?" his mother asked weakly, her voice barely above a whisper.
"Currently just one, a ’gift’ from Victor, but later..." Ren trailed off, realizing that explaining the full scope of what "later" ant might be too much right now.
"And that?" His father pointed toward the extensive garden, his finger trembling slightly. The garden stretched out in organized rows, with sections clearly dedicated to different purposes. So areas had rich, dark soil prepared for planting, while others already blood with colorful flowers that swayed in the afternoon breeze.
"For cultivating dicinal herbs and... decoration, I suppose." Ren had to admit he wasn’t entirely sure about all the garden’s intended purposes.
His parents’ expressions beca increasingly comical as Ren guided them toward the entrance. His mother’s eyes kept widening with each new feature he pointed out, while his father’s mouth hung slightly open in a way that would have been funny under different circumstances. When they entered, they were greeted by two guards Ren knew well.
"Mako, Shizu," Ren greeted with familiarity. "Thank you for being here."
"Of course, young master," Mako responded with a professional bow that made Ren’s parents stiffen even more.
But his parents already knew the guard girls... it was the additional staff that really surprised them. Two maids and a butler, sent by Selphira and Julius, were positioned in the vestibule. Their postures were perfectly straight, their clothing impeccably arranged, each movent calculated to demonstrate years of professional training.
"They’ll be here temporarily," Ren explained quickly, seeing his parents’ expressions. "To educate whoever becos permanent employees about appropriate protocols and all that."
The butler, a middle-aged man with perfectly combed hair and an expression suggesting he had seen everything in his long career, stepped forward with a perfect bow.
"Lord Patinder," he said with a perfectly modulated voice. "It’s a pleasure to finally et you. Lady Selphira speaks very highly of you."
"The pleasure is mine," Ren responded, trying not to sound too uncomfortable with the formality.
His parents, for their part, seed to have forgotten how to breathe properly. His mother’s hand found his father’s arm, gripping it tightly enough that it hurt.
"If you’ll permit ," the butler continued, "I would like to discuss the staffing needs for a property of this size."
He led Ren and his parents through a tour that revealed exactly how massive the property was.
"Is that...?" his father began, pointing toward a side wing.
"A private library?" his mother completed, her voice rising an octave. "Why would we need a private library?"
"To store knowledge and not forget it," Ren responded. "It’ll be useful since I plan to write many books... And it already ca with the house."
There were also reception halls with vaulted ceilings painted in scenes of fantastical dragons, formal and informal dining rooms that could accommodate anywhere from employees, intimate family als to lavish banquets, nurous guest rooms each decorated in different thes, extensive service areas with their own separate corridors hidden from view, kitchens that would make professional chefs cry with envy.
The formal dining room alone could seat thirty people comfortably, with crystal chandeliers that caught the light and scattered rainbows across polished marble floors. The informal dining area was nearly as large, with floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the gardens.
The guest wing had ten separate suites, each with its own sitting room and private bath. The service quarters were a maze of storage rooms, laundry facilities, and staff housing that seed to stretch endlessly.
"To maintain this appropriately," the butler explained as they walked, carrying the authority of soone who had managed similar properties for decades, "I would recomnd hiring at least twenty people. Perhaps thirty initially to gradually eliminate those who don’t achieve a certain quality standard..."
He continued listing the required positions: head chef and kitchen staff, groundskeepers, housekeepers, personal attendants, security personnel beyond the guards already assigned. Each category seed to branch into sub-categories that made Ren’s head spin slightly.
Ren sighed but nodded. There were many people he wanted to support with good salaries, and frankly he didn’t have spare positions. Even so there would be not only 20 or 30 people getting help, with each good salary, entire families could be supported.
When they reached the back courtyard, his mother’s eyes lit up. It was spacious, well-maintained, with enough space for...
"We could put the restaurant here," she murmured, almost to herself.
The butler cleared his throat discreetly. "If you’ll permit , madam, I would advise against that option."
All three Patinders looked at him.
"It would be looked upon unfavorably," he explained with diplomatic tact. "A high nobility family operating a restaurant from their main residence communicates... incorrect ssages about financial stability and social priorities."
He paused, then added: "However, Lady Ashenway predicted sothing like this and permitted to inform you that she can get you a good space near high client traffic at ten percent of its market price. You could install a formal establishnt there, appropriate for your family’s new rank, but separate from the main residence."
Ren did the ntal calculations. That ten percent around here was still a considerable amount, probably more than he had spent on his first two properties combined. But it sounded like an extrely good investnt.
He thought of Finch and Theodore, his ’financial advisors’ who, when they learned about Selphira and Julius’s help with the mansion, had dramatically ’died of envy’, constantly comnting on the advantages of having powerful patrons who subsidized properties in their territory.
This was exactly the kind of opportunity that would make Theodore pretend to faint with envy again.
He should use it.
"I want it," Ren said finally. "When can we see the available options?"
"I can arrange visits for tomorrow," the butler responded. "Lady Ashenway has already identified three potential locations she believes would be appropriate."
Of course she had. Selphira rarely left anything ’Ren related’ to chance after what happened at the beginning of the war with the Goldcrests...
His parents still seed to be processing everything. His mother walked slowly toward the garden’s edge, touching the decorative flowers with trembling fingers. The petals were soft, well-tended, the kind that required daily care and attention. His father simply stood in the courtyard’s center, turning slowly to absorb the magnitude of what was now, apparently, theirs.
"This is too much for our small family," his father finally murmured.
"Maybe," Ren responded. "But it’s necessary."
"When did you beco so casual with wealth?" his mother asked, turning toward him with an expression that mixed pride with concern.
Ren considered the question. "When I realized that money is just a tool. A useful one, yes, but in the end only the purpose matters... what you can do with it."
He paused, looking at the mansion he now owned. "And I need to be able to do much more."
The butler observed the exchange with the neutral expression of soone trained not to comnt on his employers’ family matters. The maids and guards maintained discreet positions too, present but not intrusive.
"Then," Ren’s father finally said, straightening, "we’re going to need to learn quickly."
"Very quickly," his mother added. "Because we clearly have a lot to learn about how to live... like this."
She gestured vaguely toward the entire mansion, the expression on her face suggesting she still wasn’t completely sure this wasn’t so kind of dream.
Ren smiled, feeling so of the tension in his chest loosen. His parents were going to be alright. Maybe not imdiately, maybe not without stumbles and awkward monts, but they were going to adapt.
At least, that’s what Ren hoped.
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