"Very well", Cale and Julius replied in unison as they bowed to the guests and left the room. Without saying a word, they walked a few meters away to distance themselves from the guards, before both relaxed their stern posture and breathed a sigh of relief.
"By the gods, time seemed to stand still", Julius Venlan complained first, raising his hands in the air to stretch. Cale did the same and rubbed his neck as he thought about the last 15 minutes. Duke of Nihmskell had spared him from further questions and continued the conversation with Julius, which, however, proceeded in a similar manner. But throughout the whole time, besides the subtle insults, he heard one question over and over again, only phrased differently.
"Was it just me, or did Duke of Nihmskell want a reward for finding the children?"
"I heard that too."
"What a brazen man. One would think he would be relieved to be able to provide a clue about the kidnappings across the country and offer his assistance, but instead he is only trying to profit from it."
"One would think so, yes."
"And someone like that calls himself a noble", Cale replied with a sigh. "I'm curious to hear what Duke of Freigoud will say after the conversation."
"I doubt it will be anything good."
"Me too."
"But I have to say... after you came, it wasn't nearly as bad as before."
"He was even ruder?", Cale asked incredulously, lowering his hands and looking at Julius Venlan as he felt a shadow following him.
"That would be an understatement. He questioned me so directly about my life and implied how lucky I am to have landed in my current position as an advisor."
"People like that are truly the worst. They only ever see the end result, but they don't know what it took to achieve that goal. Hard-working people don't exist for them because everything was handed to them on a silver platter. Why don't people in power ever realize that they have a certain responsibility and should protect those who are unable to fend for themselves?"
"Very true", Julius said, a little calmer than before, which made Cale smile and put his hand on his back.
"Well done, really. If I had been stuck there for an hour, I would have freaked out", Cale replied, causing Julius to laugh sheepishly. With a satisfied smile, he let go of Julius and looked out the window to his left. It was already noon, and Cedrik would surely be asked by several other soldiers what had happened to Jarle and why he was all alone. You could almost feel sorry for the young man.
"You seem to have been quite upset that he insulted you like that."
"More than I should have been. I have to admit that. I'm just not used to such rude comments anymore. Even if he doesn't know exactly who I am, that doesn't mean he can walk all over me."
"Did that often happen in the past? People being disrespectful to you?"
"All the time! People tend to judge you by your appearance without knowing how deadly that could be for them. However, when I reached a certain age, that eventually stopped, although I have to say that I wasn't really out in public at that point."
"I see", Julius replied thoughtfully and walked toward his office.
"Can you tell me why I'm here, then?"
"Excuse me?"
"Well, Duke of Freigoud more or less asked me to come with him to the palace. But he never told me why."
"He didn't say anything? Did he perhaps want to hear your opinion on the whole matter because you know Jarle of Mornet?"
"I don't know, he didn't mention anything. I sat around for half an eternity and overheard things I probably shouldn't have heard", Cale replied, though he wasn't so sure about his own comment. Maybe Loys wanted to keep an eye on him but didn't want to make it so obvious? Or maybe he felt bad and wanted to apologize for his behavior in this way?
"Oh, Loys... sometimes he's just unpredictable."
"Do you think I could go home for an hour?"
"Home?"
"I've been up since 1 in the morning. This all happened right after my night patrol, and I didn't have time to change, let alone eat anything."
"By the gods, have you slept at all?"
"No", Cale replied, coming to a halt. "I would just really like to freshen up, if that's okay."
Cale had no problem with simply staying in the palace. But since he wanted to appear normal to the outside world, he had to behave accordingly. Besides, Loys was currently engaged in conversation, so he wanted to use this brief moment to maintain the illusion.
"If you want, you can wash and eat here. We have plenty of uniforms", Julius Venlan offered.
"If I can, I'd love to."
"Of course, come with me, I'll show you where we usually wash. Unfortunately, I don't know if Loys still wants something from you, so I would advise against distancing yourself too much, even though I can't forbid you."
"It's okay, I should have asked first. I just completely forgot in all the excitement."
"Understandable", Julius replied kindly and led Cale into a hallway that led to the stairs. He climbed the steps and then turned into a part of the castle that Cale had never entered in his life. "Here. If you follow this path, you'll end up at the laundry room. We also have showers and changing rooms there, directly opposite the rooms where the uniforms are cleaned. You can just ask one of the ladies there for a uniform in your size, and they'll provide one for you."
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"Thank you very much."
"You're welcome. I'll be in my office catching up on work. Will you come see me afterward?"
"I will", Cale replied politely and said goodbye to him before following the corridor.
Even from a distance, he could sense dozens of mana sources, and with every step he took, he heard more and more voices, mostly female. Two ladies shot across the hallway in the other direction without noticing him. Without a word, Cale walked to the end of the building and discovered the showers, so he went to the rooms where most people were staying. He approached an open door from which light was coming. Women's voices could be heard, followed by soft laughter, as Cale stepped into the doorway and knocked politely on the door frame.
"Excuse me for disturbing you, ladies. Sir Venlan told me that I could find a uniform for myself here."
The ladies flinched in surprise and looked over at Cale at the same time. They were currently busy folding the clothes neatly and sorting them onto the shelves. All seven women present remained silent, and Cale could sense the servants from the neighboring room squeezing against the door to catch a glimpse of him.
"Of course, sir, please follow me", one of the older ladies finally replied, placing her shirt on the pile, loosening her white apron, and hurrying to Cale's side.
Cale elegantly stepped aside to let the lady pass, for which the stranger thanked him politely. The other servants, who had been watching Cale from behind, quickly withdrew their heads and pretended not to have noticed anything, while their eyes burned into Cale.
Without a word, Cale followed the small woman, who unlocked a seemingly random door, turned on the light, and immediately reached for the shelf at her side. She pulled out two pairs of pants, glanced at Cale, then chose one and put the other back. She did the same with the other items before placing everything on a large table and turning to Cale to ask for his shoe size. Somewhat surprised, Cale answered her and watched as the woman quickly disappeared through a side door and emerged a few seconds later with a pair of jet-black shoes. She stacked everything up and approached Cale, who had remained motionless by the door.
"There are towels and detergent in the showers, sir", the lady explained as she turned off the light and locked the door. "If you need anything, please let us know."
"Thank you very much for your help", replied Cale, and was about to reach for the clothes, but the woman didn't seem to notice his intention, because she turned to the side and led Cale back down the hallway she had just come from. As before, all the curious heads disappeared almost simultaneously, as if they were afraid of getting into trouble. When Cale arrived in front of the lady's workplace, he stopped, and the lady did the same. "You can give me the clothes, I can find my way from here. I don't want to keep you from your work, milady."
"You're not, sir", replied the lady, her face turning red before she noticed Cale's outstretched hands and finally complied with his request.
She carefully placed everything in his hands and bowed to Cale, who immediately did the same. With a final thank you, Cale disappeared a few meters further into one of the large cabins, drew the curtain, and looked in the mirror. He immediately noticed the golden badge on his chest and realized why the servants had been so strangely polite. They must have believed that he was a high-ranking employee-perhaps even a noble-because he was still walking around with Loys' badge. Hesitantly, Cale placed his clothes on the shelf in front of the mirror and reached for the uniform, which had no stripes on the shoulders.
The lady had given him a uniform that Julius Venlan and Loys of Freigoud himself also wore. Soldiers usually wore a mark on their shoulder to indicate their rank. Not having any mark meant that he was above the 1st Company, even above his mentor Mamoru Meyrl and An Penedran, who was known as the most influential soldier in the 6th Life. For a moment, Cale considered saying something, but decided against it.
He put the uniform aside and undressed as he could hear the first voices again. They were much quieter than before, probably because Cale was still within earshot. However, Cale did not dwell on the matter, but instead let his mana flow through the floors of the palace to sense where Julius and Loys were currently located. When he determined their expected location, he pulled the shower curtain aside and stepped under the shower head while looking for soap. He spotted it embedded in the wall behind him, grabbed it, turned on the water, and began to wash himself.
Barely two minutes after stepping under the water, mana spread through his body and he could sense the Eldest's presence. Somewhat irritated by the timing, he paused in all his movements as the mage spoke up.
<"Hello, Caleb.">
<"Damian.">
<"I hope I'm not disturbing you.">
<"You aren't. What can I do for you?">
<"I just wanted to let you know that the message from the palace arrived earlier. They are granting my request, and in two weeks we will be coming to Bellator.">
<"That's good news. Aaron, Grischa, Rangar, Sefra, Odin, and you, I assume?">
<"I don't know yet if I'll take Grischa with me.">
<"Why not?">
<"We have revoked his rank as a council member.">
<"Oh", Cale replied irritated, and began to laugh at the absurdity of the statement. <"I didn't expect that.">
<"I think it was a little early. We'll wait a few years and see how things develop before the topic becomes interesting again. I hope that's okay with you.">
<"Of course. He has more important things to do, I agree with you.">
<"That's true.">
<"Even though I would have liked to see him">, Cale confessed and resumed his shower while continuing to talk to the Eldest.
<"Understandable, next time, I promise.">
<"I don't need it that badly. I can always drop by if I feel the urge.">
<"Well, that's good. How are you doing? Any news?">
<"Actually, yes. Tonight, a carriage was stopped that was carrying kidnapped children.">
<"Really?">
<"I can't say much about it yet, but the trail currently leads us to Duke of Mornet.">
<"Duke of Mornet?"> Damian repeated.
<"According to Jarle of Mornet, his youngest son, he is responsible for the kidnappings, but we can't prove anything at the moment. Sir Venlan, Sir Freigoud, and I have been busy organizing the chaos all morning. Once Duke of Mornet arrives in Bellator, I'm sure I'll be able to tell you more.">
<"Sounds really exciting. Will you keep me posted?">
<"Of course.">
<"Thanks. I won't bother you anymore then.">
<"See you">, Cale said goodbye and washed a little faster because he noticed that Sir Freigoud had started moving. He rubbed his body clean and shook out his hair before turning off the water and stepping out of the shower. He grabbed a towel and dried his body, while using wind magic to dry his hair and let it fall neatly back. Somewhat frantically, he slipped into his new clothes, separated the golden crest from his white shirt, attached it to his new uniform, folded everything into a pile, and stepped out of the shower.
"Can I leave these things with you?", Cale asked a young woman, who immediately approached him and took the pile.
"Of course, sir."
"Thank you. Have a nice day, everyone", Cale replied kindly and strode toward the stairs from which he had come.
Sir Freigoud also stepped out of the meeting room and led the group toward the entrance a few moments later. At the same time, Cale walked one floor above him to the main entrance of the palace and waited a few moments until Sir Freigoud entered the palace entrance with the guests. Without a word, Cale walked past the soldiers and approached Loys, who was politely saying goodbye to Duke Nihmskell and his entourage. To Cale's surprise, Loys bowed to them, giving Duke Nihmskell a direct view of Cale. Cale subconsciously sensed that the man was about to make a snide comment, but instead he looked at Cale in disbelief, bowed to Loys, and hurriedly disappeared from the royal residence - accompanied by several soldiers who led him to his carriage.
"I was wondering who was sneaking up behind us", Loys said a moment later, after he had straightened up and noticed Cale.
"I hope that wasn't rude of me. I saw you and thought I'd come down to you."
"It's fine, it suited me just fine. Sir Nihmskell seemed a little afraid of you. Did you say anything to him?", Loys asked curiously, gesturing for Cale to follow him. For a brief moment, Loys realized what uniform Cale was wearing, but he didn't pursue the matter.
"Maybe my honest answers to his questions bothered him."
"Did he bother you?"
"I think Julius suffered more, from the sound of it."
"By the gods, Rion causes me more problems than I already have", Loys replied, which made Cale laugh softly.