The man of the ancient order (double chapter)
A middle-aged man sat down on a bench at the water fountain of a considerably huge, private garden.
A garden like this was a massive, inexcusable waste of what little habitable land was left in the whole of the spiritual world.
As always, however, when it came to the governing bodies, the rules applied… differently. As such, the castle where the council of the sages would gather went against every idea and principle prevailing in the area, putting comfort, grandeur, and looks over practicality and efficiency.
With all of that said, the middle-aged man just sat down on his bench and basked in the warm rays of the sun cast at a high angle down the keep's inner rampart.
This place was a slice of heaven, artificially kept alive only by the constant stream of money and resources pouring in to keep it alive, against all the odds, against all that one would expect to happen.