42 Time Passes in the Blink of an Eye
"What troubles you, Master?"
"Can't I just be thinking about nothing...?"
"..."
"It was just a joke, Eula...please don't apologize..."
"I see...I'll remember that..."
"..."
Suppressing a sigh, Paul just closed his eyes, the soft feeling of Eula's inordinately developed thighs helping to calm his turbulent mind.
Nearly five years had passed since Paul was first given access to the Intersection of Fate. Since then, he had summoned a total of 33 out of a purported 108 'characters'. Eula, the icy-blue-haired tween letting him use her lap as a pillow, was one of Paul's more recent summons. She was also one of only two people to attend him during his final year at the Academy, so Paul was nervous, excited, and a little afraid to return home.
As fate would have it, Barbara ended up being the person to accumulate the most Constellations among the people Paul had summoned. She was now at Constellation 4, and, due to her mastery of the Regeneration Spell, she could even give Jean a run for her money.
Before Paul set out for his final year at the Academy, Barbara had gotten into a pretty tense squabble with Ningguang, Jean, and a few others. She eventually calmed down, but Paul could still remember the frustration and pain in her eyes during their last parting.
"Is it too late to run away...?"
"Master Paul is not the type of man who flees from his troubles...however, if you wish to go, I will open a path..."
Placing her gloved hand on his head, Eula gently combed her fingers through Paul's unkempt brown hair. Her perpetually stoic expression didn't change, but there was a definite tenderness in her golden eyes.
"Mmm...if I wasn't certain that Barbara and the rest would hunt me down, I might have considered it..."
Imagining the angry face of Barbara after she had tracked him down, a faint shiver ran through Paul's body. Once she had obtained her second Constellation, it had become difficult for him to keep up with her. Since the effects of a Constellation compounded previous boosts, C4 Barbara was a 'monster' that Paul had spent the last years training to overcome.
"Did you catch a chill? Shall I warm you with my body...?"
Having long grown accustomed to such requests, Paul replied with a lazy, "Maybe later..." before rolling over so that he was now facing Eula. A very faint shade of pink spread through her cheeks, but that was generally the limit of her expressiveness.
At least when she wasn't angry...
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After a six-day journey, made shorter by the addition of several highways, Paul emerged from his carriage with a wry smile on his face. Not because Ningguang had gathered nearly half the Estate to greet him, but because Lynette, his self-assigned assassin/bodyguard, appeared from below the carriage with a ghastly pale countenance and a visible trail of snot coming from her left nostril.
"You wouldn't be so cold if you stayed inside..."
With lightly furrowed brows, the grey-haired cat girl responded with a curt, "Shut up..." before 'reluctantly' accepting the coat Paul had been proffering toward her.
Turning back to face Ningguang, who now resembled a young girl closer to the age of twelve than ten, Paul whispered, "You get more and more beautiful each time I see you..." as he made his way forward to kiss the back of her hand.
Giggling in amusement, Ningguang offered a soft, "Six out of ten..." before retracting her hand and linking it through Paul's left arm. Then, in an even softer voice, she delivered him a metaphorical punch in the gut by asking, "Have you made your decision...?"
Instead of responding to Ningguang's question, Paul looked around at the veritable army of incredibly disciplined Maids, Butlers, and uniformed staff members. There was a thin layer of snow covering some of them, but they didn't so much as shiver as he passed.
"How are Philemon and Aubert? I was hoping to see how much they had matured these past ten months..."
Squinting her eyes, a knowing smile developed across Ningguang's face as she answered, "Two-year-olds have no place venturing outside in frigid temperatures...fortunately..."
Timing her words just as a team of Maids opened the front doors of the Estate, Ningguang added, "That's what the entrance hall is for."
"Brother Paul...!" "Uncle Paul...!"
With their mothers, Valentine and Flute, remaining inside, two little boys, one with light brown hair and the other a deep shade of burgundy, ran towards Paul. Ningguang had already released his arm, so Paul was able to kneel in front of the remarkably similar duo, deftly snatching them in his arms as he asked, "Did you miss me?"
While the two boys laughed due to Paul picking them up and spinning them around, Valentine stepped forward to whisper her usual, "You've returned to me, my Little Sun..."
Adopting an even wider smile, Paul promptly set down his two younger brothers in order to welcome his mother's impending embrace. A year or two back, this would have meant consigning himself to having her either bend down or pick him up by his head. Now that he was just over 148cm tall, 17cm shorter than his mother, Paul was at the 'perfect height' for her to both embrace him and press his face into her bosom.
"Mmm...my cheeks are no longer cold..."
Hearing her son's remark, a bell-like laugh emanated from Valentine's throat as she held Paul's head tighter and whispered, "Rascal..." in an affectionate tone before eventually releasing him.
"How was your journey back? I hear the conditions of the road have improved tremendously these past few months..."
Directing her gaze towards Ningguang, Valentine made it clear who was responsible for their Region's recent improvements in infrastructure. The costs had been immense, but Ningguang had managed to get the Royal Family to bear the burden by transferring ownership of the various mines she had discovered to the King. Of course, Amarant had been the one to broker the deal, but he did so with Ningguang's coaching.
Returning a smile, Paul surprised his mother with a chaste kiss on the lips before releasing her from his own hold and saying, "It only took six days, even with the snowfall. Offering the villages tax exemptions in exchange for helping to maintain the roads was a stroke of brilliance..."
Directing his gaze to Ningguang, Paul surprised her by extending his hand and guiding her to stand in line with him. Then, for the first time in front of one of his parents, he placed his hand on Ningguang's waist, pulling her a little closer as he said, "I have a very capable fiancee..."
Though she was well aware of the arrangement between Ningguang and her husband, Valentine's eyes practically lit up when she heard Paul refer to the remarkably capable and breathtakingly beautiful girl as his fiancee. If not for the presence of several servants and staff, she might not have been able to suppress the girlish squeal threatening to escape her throat.
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After freeing himself from his increasingly excitable mother, Paul made his way to his father's study without an escort. He was keen to meet with the people he had summoned from the Intersection of Fate, but there were a few matters he wished to discuss before all hell broke loose.
*tok* *tok* *tok*
"Come on in, son. I've been expecting you."
Opening the once heavy door, Paul was a little surprised to find his father standing in front of his desk rather than sitting behind it. In his hand was an astonishingly expensive bottle of wine, a vintage so rare and valuable only Kings and successive generations of the Notos Family knew its taste. More specifically, the Lords of House Notos...
"Father..."
Waving his son over, Amarant's expression was solemn as he placed his hand on Paul's shoulder and said, "I'm proud of you, my boy...even if not by your hand, you have already done more for the Milbots Region in these short five years than I have in my past twenty. While it can't be officiated until you produce a viable heir, I intend to announce my retirement during your forthcoming birthday celebration. If you accept this drink, then from that moment onward, you will be the Lord of House Notos..."
Instead of waiting for Paul to take it himself, Amarant picked up the glass, proferring to his son as he said, "Take it..." in a firm tone.
Inhaling a deep breath, more to suppress the sour feeling in his nose than anything else, Paul accepted the glass and answered, "It was my greatest fortune to be born as your son. Thank you, father...and I accept..."
Following his heartfelt words, Paul downed the scantily filled cup of wine. The taste was actually beyond terrible, but he swallowed the entire thing in a single gulp.
Preempting any response Paul might have given, Amarant stated, "Tastes like piss mixed with spoiled grapes, doesn't it?"
Offering a wry smile, Paul replied, "I couldn't have said it better..." before setting the glass on the table and asking, "Got anything more 'recent' to wash it down?"
Adopting a rare smile, Amarant's leafy-green eyes glistened as he walked around to the back of his desk and pulled out a silver canister, explaining, "That little Beast Race girl is a genius in the art of mixing. I had her throw together a little something special for us this morning..."
Placing his hand on the canister's lid, Amarant hesitated a moment before removing it to reveal a haze of cold mist. A fragrant aroma of alcohol and fruit immediately permeated the entire room, its fragrance, alone, enough to stir the hearts and minds of men.
"Even once I retire to the Capital, promise you will send me at least one, no, three bottles of Diona's Brandywine to me..."
Raising his brows, Paul replied, "I'll send ten." before asking, "You intend to retire to the Capital? Isn't it a little...early?"
Pausing before he could fill his and his son's glasses, Amarant's smile faded as he answered, "After seeing how well Philemon and Aubert get along, I have decided to take Flute as my Second Wife. Once I pass the Lordship to you, I will move to our residence in the Capital so that your younger brothers may enroll in the Royal Academy. Their talent may not compare to yours, but I believe they can become competent Knights or Mages. Two-year-olds being able to use Beginner Level Magic is beyond extraordinary..."
Though he was initially a little surprised to hear that Amarant would be taking Flute as his Second Wife, Paul quickly regained a smile as he said, "That's excellent news, father. However, there was something I wished to discuss with you before you go traipsing about in the Capital..."
"Hmmm? Out with it, boy."
Taking the opportunity to fill the two glasses, Amarant nearly spilled both when Paul said, "I intend to go on a pilgrimage to the Sword Sanctum and train there for two years."
After reaching Advanced Rank in the Water God Style, Paul felt as though his progress had slowed drastically. Augusta told him this was because he was still growing, but he also speculated it was an issue with affinity. Paul had trained like a madman, yet even after besting one of the Saint Ranked Instructors in two out of ten matches, he only had a basic grasp of Touki.
Paul knew the actual reason for his stunted growth was his secret training with Visions, so he wanted to journey to the literal Holy Land of Swords to 'purify' himself. He also needed to go there if he wished for Ei and the rest to receive official titles, so Paul wasn't ready to 'settle down' just yet.
Since he had also dreamed of going on a journey to the Sword Sanctum in his youth, Amarant couldn't blame his son, a far more talented swordsman than he, for wanting to do the same. He also wasn't planning to depart for the Capital until the boys were nearing their fifth birthdays, so while Paul had initially expected him to protest, Amarant just shrugged his shoulders and said, "If that terrifying little lass of yours gives her permission, I have nothing else to say on the matter. Now, stop stalling, and let's drink. If you keep interrupting, I may actually punch you..."
Without waiting for his son to respond, Amarant emptied nearly the entire contents of his glass in six large gulps. When he was finished, he exhaled a loud sigh similar to a drunken Yakuza, stunning his already slack-jawed son to silence...
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