"Drenched in the Fountain"

"Where can I meet Madame Priscilla?"

"You can see her vacation home if you walk toward the end of this road. There's a big fountain in front of it, so… wait, are you going to order or not?! Hey, wait!"

Without thinking twice, Ivory stood up and left Ebleu as she ran towards the cobblestoned road. Her body felt heavy because of her fever, but she didn't stop her tracks.

Meanwhile, in front of Madame Priscilla's vacation home just behind the fountain, Sigmund was arguing with her, "I agreed because you told me I would become your butler and get gold coins! But a toyboy? What the hell?"

The rich woman, holding a frilled umbrella to cover her sensitive skin from the sunlight, raised her eyebrow, "You seem like the type to serve other people, so I thought you should just serve me. What do you say?"

"I accepted your offer as a butler, but not as dirty as a toyboy."

"Why?" she started tracing his jawline with her forefinger. "You're young... and you're handsome," she let out a giggle, which only made him more annoyed. "Even if you don't smile, you're still charming and that's what I like about you. Now, I want to have you as my own, Sigmund. Serve only me, and I will make sure that you can afford anything you want."

Her offer was very tempting, and Sigmund wanted a good life just like before.

His previous Master, Deshanna Fogheart, was a prodigy. Coming from a poor family in Barion Town in that same land, the Land of Olivea, and graduated with the highest ranking at Qawiun Academy, she was already assigned as one of the Royal Knights at the age of twenty-two.

Sigmund knew she was special. Even after his Summoning, he already felt her strong mana, and they easily trusted each other after their Contract Ritual, making them one of the strongest and one of the most famous pairs in the Kingdom of Destinia. They were also invited to live in the Silverblade Castle and received special treatments, like eating fancy meals and being dressed in expensive clothing.

How nice would it be if Sigmund could return to those wonderful moments. But checking on reality, he was no longer a Royal Knight's Servant, and now, both him and his current Master couldn't afford anything.

Soon after, Ivory found the rich lady's vacation home. She strode along the pathway, which had a shingle-style landscape on the side, and saw the ivy-covered mansion right after the fountain.

"Sigmund!" Ivory shouted as soon as she saw him.

"You…" The Vampire Servant was surprised to see his new Master in that place, "What are you doing here?"

"Who is this woman?" Madame Priscilla asked, gesturing to her workers to shoo her away, "Don't let her come near."

The workers stepped forward and walked over to Ivory.

"I'll get out of here once I take Sigmund with me. Let's not fight, please?" Ivory pleaded with them and faced Sigmund, "Let's go..."

Madame Priscilla scanned her from head to toe. She smirked, judging that she's nothing but a poor woman, "Sigmund, you'll come with a low-class girl like her? She looked like she couldn't even afford a piece of potato!"

Sigmund clenched his fist. Something inside him wanted to protect his current Master, but the other side of him wanted to stay as a human and live a luxurious life.

Madame Priscilla saw Sigmund's wavering eyes. She faced and yelled at her workers, "What are you waiting for? Get her out of my sight!"

"No, I need to take Sigmund with me!" Ivory turned her body to the side, her hands balled into fists. Her knees were slightly bent and both feet were positioned accordingly, right foot at the back while the left foot pointed straight.

"What are you doing, you dimwit?" Sigmund knew his current Master was a careless one and has not yet been trained for combat.

"I'm… I'm not going to back down! I am bringing you with me, Sigmund!" Ivory yelled, "GAAAAAHHH!"

She charged onto the group of workers, who were in sleeveless striped blue and white sailor outfits. They were unarmed, yet their defined muscles were terrifying. She knew she would be flying in the sea once they hit her, but her goal was to reach her Servant and drag him out of Madame Priscilla's residence.

But of course, she was at a disadvantage. They easily blocked her and threw her in the fountain, making Ivory soaking wet from head to toe. Madame Priscilla laughed at her, while Sigmund didn't know what reaction he should make. Should he be embarrassed for her?

Since Ivory had already fallen in the fountain, the workers decided to drag her away in that pitiful state. But before they could even reach her, suddenly, the surroundings got misty. It became so foggy that they couldn't see anything.

"Wha… What's happening?!" Madame Priscilla panicked. "They might escape! Don't let them!"

Sigmund, who can sense a chosen person's mana, hurriedly walked over to the direction where Ivory could be. She was still in the fountain, but to his surprise, he sensed a different type of mana within his Master. It was like Ivory's mana got stronger that he didn't recognize it to be coming from her!

The Servant was amazed by the fact his current Master might have a great potential. Somewhere within him, he was curious and wanted to perform the Contract Ritual at that very moment. But the situation wasn't very good, and they needed to get out of there first.

He reached for Ivory's arms and pulled her up.

"Sig...mund…" Ivory's weak voice called for him. "Come with me… Please…"

"I will, you stupid woman. Let's get out of here. Where's the coachman?"

"At the eatery near the docks… It's called Tuna House."

"Got it. Stand up, will you-"

Ivory wasn't able to stand up and fainted in Sigmund's arms. Not minding his defined six-pack abs to be exposed, he removed his server's shirt and wrapped it around her. His strong arms scooped her up and carried her like a princess. With haste, he ran away until the mist was almost gone.

As soon as the fog completely vanished, Madame Priscilla was left in shock and ordered her men to look for the two. However, they were too afraid to move, which disappointed the woman very much. She grumpily walked over towards the fountain and was surprised that it was all dried up.

"That was… That was definitely magic. Then that girl… She had the birthmark of Destinia?!" she exclaimed, feeling defeated over it.

Sigmund finally found Ebleu and they rode the carriage, carefully positioning Ivory beside him and placing her head on his shoulder. His right arm was behind her head and his other hand was holding her arm as support. He was worried seeing his frail Master soaking wet. He touched her forehead and noticed that her body temperature had risen.

"She needs to change her clothes, be quick!" Sigmund uttered as he held Ivory tightly, "You know where she lives, right? Let's take her home."