12 Food Preservation Device

Kaytle took him out by the back. The children's voices still screeched through the air, Julian could hear them harassing Leonel from here. Good.

"There was an innate mage that popped up on Fauster. A powerful one." Kaytle spoke with a low voice. Though she couldn't understand why Julian didn't want this information relayed in front of Leonel, she assumed there was good reason.

Julian rubbed his chin and nodded. An innate mage was simply a mage that had come into power without a master. Most mages do not come into being until after they've been blessed with knowledge about the craft. However, there were cases of innate mages with chaotic circuits that can cast magic without learning proper spells. They were volatile but not always dangerous.

He quietly wondered if the injury on Leonel's abdomen was caused by this innate mage. Though Katyle called them powerful, the wound on Leonel's abdomen was inflicted by a pretty low powered spell. He waited for the young woman to continue, "there was a sum on her head. But she was someone important's daughter you see? The Inquisitors ran into some trouble, of a humankind."

Julian cut her off, "Inquisitors? Must have been a very special case."

Inquisitors normally worked alone, aside from when receiving Royal Orders. Just who was this innate mage?

"Mayhaps. I'm not too familiar, I'm afraid. I only know that there was some inner turmoil. Even the viscount got involved and was not impressed with how the Inquisitors handled things. Word went around that a High Bishop was going to be sent soon to placate things."

Very interesting. What could have happened for even a High Bishop to be involved? Julian reckoned that the innate mage was not only exceptionally powerful but also a person with important social status. That was the only reason he could see behind all the commotion.

"What happened to the mage?" He asked.

Katyle shook her head, "Afraid I'm not too certain about her fate either. Sorry Doctor."

Julian opened his mouth, about to question her further but he was interrupted by a familiar little army of shrills.

"Doctor Julian! Madam Sister Katty! Food's ready!"

Katyle instantly responded, revealing their location, "What did I say about screaming? Bet'cha I'm going to give you a good spanking!" She then sighed and turned back to the doctor with a much calmer tone, "Sorry about those brats. Let's go eat before you keel over from starvation."

Julian raised a brow, "I won't keel over." He hummed. The truth was that mages could go on without food for a much longer period of time.

Well, he might have forgotten to eat much in the past few days as well before Leonel's arrival but he was trying his best to ignore the growling in his stomach and the weakness in his limbs.

They came around to the front of the house and found all eight children screaming and cheering at their arrival. The dinner table was set with Leonel sitting at its head with a deep frown on his face. Julian couldn't help but laugh. Their father though was nowhere to be seen.

"Where's the master of the house?"

Katyle shook her head, "Out with the lads, he says. Don't worry about pa. Just come and eat with us."

"Yes, eat." Leonel agreed, his palm prevented one of the snotty brats from coming too close but the three-year-old toddler was seated on his shoulder and using his hair like horse reins.

"You look ridiculous," Julian snickered.

"Shut it and eat."

This time he didn't argue but kept the smug smirk upon his face, sitting at a table filled with a delicious home-cooked meal was a rare occasion for Julian so he decided to enjoy it. The soup was warm and cooked with heart-warming love. He had a feeling that one of the kids put a bit too much salt in the potato salad, but Julian didn't mind so much. The air was filled with joy and merriment, he could almost ignore Leonel's irritated grumbling.

The broody ball of anger sure was popular with the kids though, amused by a man they could climb like a tree.

Leonel suffered greatly and Julian was suitably entertained.

It was late by the time they waved goodbye. The sky was dark, stars scattered about with crickets singing a symphony of song with frogs.

"Come by more often!" Kaytle waved.

"You're rarely even home!" Julian shouted back at her as he continued to walk away.

Leonel grumbled at this side. The few villagers that were still completing a few nightly chores bid their own farewells and it was only when they were far enough on the path not to be heard by the villagers did the Inquisitor speak up again.

"I can't believe they tolerate your awful personality here. It's only thanks to them that you've been able to survive for so long on your own." A sneer decorated his handsome features, lips twitching with annoyance that had built steadily throughout the day.

"Oh quiet." Julian stopped for a moment to use his walking stick to whack the petulant man. With all the bags strung around his arms, he didn't have the chance to dodge the assault and could only growl angrily in response. "I'm their Doctor so of course they tolerate me."

The Inquisitor was not in a good mood. "I suppose that's the only way they're going to welcome a person such as yourself."

"Enough with the insults," Julian sighed, knowing them to at least be partially true. "It's not like you're much of a pleasant person yourself."

"Never said I was."

When they made it back up the hill, Julian bore witness to the piles of random items still piled up outside his house. There were strings of bird shit on them now, along with dirt and other disturbances. He sighed at the mess, knowing that he'd have to deal with them at some point or another.

"What's up with all this anyway?" Leonel asked pointedly. He made a weird face at the Old Age armor that was still propped up against the log.

"I had to make room for my new guest when he showed up uninvited. I wasn't given much of a notice of his arrival, you know?"

"I can't believe you have so much useless junk. I don't even know where you're going to put all of this." Leonel was talking about the giant mountain of crap he was holding. Half was which were food supplies he was going to need around to feed this awful new pet until he was well enough to go off on his own. And the other half were just random things he purchased to harass Leonel back in the village.

Julian shrugged and ushered the Inquisitor inside.

But even then, the complaining and insults did not relent. "No offense, Doctor, but it's basically a pig's nest in here. I bet the village brats keep yelling at you to get a wife."

That, was painfully accurate. If Julian had a coin for each time Freddie brought that up, he'd be a wealthy man. Then again, if he sold his junk and stopped buying useless things like that paperweight he got today then maybe he wouldn't be struggling so much with money.

Julian grumbled at the rude Inquisitor and proceeded to the Blueiron Food Preservation Device™ that he liked to affectionately call a freezer. "Why did no one teach you to be grateful? I give you a roof, clothe you, treat your wounds, and feed you and this is how you treat me? Where's my thank you?"

"..."

'That's right! Writhe in guilt, you terrible, terrible rude piece of shit,' Julian sneered in his mind. He was pleasantly basking in Leonel's silence, assuming that the young man was stunned into shame from his misbehavior.

Alas, he was not expecting for blue eyes to be glazing at him when he looked up, locking immediately with his brown ones.

"...What?" Sweat trickled down Julian's face. Leonel's countenance was so difficult to read.