Ch 10: A Cause to Celebrate - Part 2

"Mister Fenrir, would you like to have more tea? Shall I pour a cup for your friend as well?"

The maid who was tending to the kitchen asked with a happy smile. She looked delighted to see Fenrir make his way toward her. She already had a tray with all different kinds of sweets ready to take.

The escort had been to a lot of places. He had been to pubs that boasted about their excellent and unparalleled service. But even those places failed to capture the majestic aura of this place.

"Sir, what would you like to have? You don't have to be shy. We are celebrating our miss breaking free from her curse, so you don't have to hold yourself back."

Fenrir's smile showed how happy he was, but seeing him happy did not make the escort happy as well.

The happier a place was, the more they had to hide. And Fenrir was the picture of a 'happy man' as far as the escort could see.

"Coffee will be fine. I don't mind having Coffee, as long as it is not too sweet. I ruin the taste of the accompanying sweets if the tea is flavored too strongly."

The escort did not mean to say these words, but they left his mouth before he could stop himself. It almost felt like he was being controlled by some kind of spell.

Before he knew it, the escort was sitting in the living room with a cup of coffee in his hand. The maid who served it to him looked like a lovely lady, and her smile lit up her whole face.

'What is happening? I did not come here to drink Coffee but to get some answers from this kid. Why do I have a cup of Coffee in my hand, and why am I so happy to sit here and waste time?'

There seemed to be no reasonable explanation for why he was here, but he could not bring himself to walk out of there and disappoint Fenrir.

"So, what was the reason you came here? You told me that you were going to be out of town for a while. What made you change your mind and come back so soon?"

Fenrir asked the escort leader, and the leader suddenly felt his tongue go dry.

He had a thousand words to say before, but now, he felt like he could not even utter a single sentence, even when he tried to. His mind went blank, and before the escort knew it, he had spent all his time in Fenrir's company but had not done anything productive.

By the time he left, the escort had forgotten why he had come to the castle in the first place.

...

"Mister Fenrir, who was that man who came to visit him? Are you close with him? I feel like I have seen him before. But he doesn't feel like a nice guy to me. You should be careful if you are thinking of spending too much time with him."

The maid told Fenrir while she gathered the cup and plate that she needed to take back. Her scolding made Fenrir let out a chuckle, and it made his beautiful face lit up.

Humans were simple creatures, and this small display of beauty was enough to bring a blush to this female's face.

"Thank you for your consideration, but I am sure I will be fine. Your worry regarding my safety will keep me from harm."

Fenrir spoke and his mannerism was mild. His gentle tone brought the maid to a halt and whatever she had to say got stuck in her throat.

In the end, she does not say anything, and Fenrir simply sips his tea.

Soon it was time for him to make his usual round around the house and check if things were going fine or not. Most of the maids assigned to help him out were professionals and they did not need much help.

What little problems that arose were quickly taken care of.

And before Fenrir knew it, the day fast approached. But just as the banquet was about to arrive, Fenrir and Countess Ann were faced with another challenge. And this time, it was one that he could not avoid facing.

A day before the banquet was to take place, Fenrir sat in front of the temple master and his second-in-command. The temple master was sweating buckets of water while his second-in-command stood rigid and unmoving.

"So, you are concerned about the safety of the people we invited. That is why you want to take a look around this place before the party is held and check if this place is secure enough to hold the banquet. Did I get it all correctly?"

Fenrir asked on behalf of the Countess. 

The current Countess was sitting behind him, and her unwavering eyes looked at the temple's representatives in front of her the same way any other noble would have looked - filled with distrust and annoyance.

"I-It's not that we don't trust you, but this concerns your reputation. A-And also, I feel the need to address the masses, and local people would feel safe if we checked this place out. But we won't do it if you don't give us permission to do so, Countess Ann."

Seeing how angry the Countess was made the temple master flinch, and he immediately jumped to make excuses in front of the Countess. He did not want to lose her favor.

But his partner did not have the same mindset he had. 

His second-in-command narrowed his eyes before he snapped his sword on the ground. It immediately made the temple master settle down, but he also had a blush on his face as he did so.

"What the temple master wants to say is that this is not optional. As much as we want to respect your privacy and believe what you said, it is our duty to check for any evil energy. It was not too long ago that this place was infected by a curse.

I am afraid that we will not be able to give you permission to host a banquet if that energy still remains in there."

The second-in-command spoke while looking all proper. His face looked as cold and unmoving as a stone.

Fenrir doubted that his beauty would move the second-in-command in such a short amount of time.

"Don't be this rude. You know that we cannot risk the Countess being angry at us."

The temple master spoke harshly before he turned toward the temple master, his eyes filled with anger.

It was clear who was the more dominant one between these two.

Fenrir also noticed that the second-in-command had more divine energy compared to the person he was serving. But he was also a few years younger.

Human society put a lot of emphasis on one's age over their capabilities and experiences, so it did not surprise Fenrir that such a situation had occurred.

And with that, he also noticed the darkness that the second-in-command carried in his heart about his unfair handling and not being made the temple master.

"Temple Master, we are here for a purpose. It would be best not to forget that. If anything were to happen, then you would be the one to be blamed. Do you think you will be able to answer the main temple if that happens?"

Fenrir noticed the elder flinch before he forced a smile on his face, but his worries had been touched by what his second-in-command had said.

The fear of the main temple made the temple master cough before he decided to take a firm stand.

"Countess, I am afraid that we will have to ask you to allow us an investigation. We won't be backing down on this discussion."

The temple master looked like he had no choice but to ask for this. 

The second-in-command looked eager to see Fenrir and the Countess's reaction. Perhaps, he thought that he would be able to find them panicking or something similar.

But Fenrir only smiled and welcomed them in.

He knew that the pair wouldn't be able to find anything in this castle. Their divinity level was too low, and even if there was something they could find, Fenrir had long devoured it and made it a part of his power.