Gifts & Plans

After adjusting his mood, Wayne placed the Statik Electric blade into the storage bag and stepped out of the room once again. He had been too hasty when leaving home, only having time to entrust his affairs to the godling, Lala. Now, almost a week later, he needed to manage the matters carefully.

However, upon walking around the house, he found the little guy to be quite reliable. Not only were the flowers and plants in the front yard well taken care of, but even the cleanliness of the house seemed untouched.

Feeling relieved, Wayne immediately headed to the market to purchase some fruits, sweets, and snacks that children liked, intending to reward Lala for her efforts.

Having learned magic from the Goddess of the Lake for some time, the little godling had grown increasingly intelligent. Moreover, with both parents being spellcasters, despite being just a godling, Lala seemed to surpass most common children in cleverness.

In the following days, Wayne found himself with plenty of leisure time. With the blessing of the goddess, he felt genuinely lucky. Even during Gwent card games with friends, he had to discreetly control his winning rate to prevent them from getting upset.

One afternoon, upon returning home from Master O'Henry's blacksmith shop, Wayne noticed Maisie waiting outside his house. She carried a basket and wore a slightly conservative maid outfit. It had been a few days since he last saw her, and Wayne couldn't help but notice that the shy maid appeared slimmer and more refined.

Seeing Wayne coming back, the girl trotted forward with a basket in her arms, a hint of blush on her face. She nodded with a smile, then handed the basket to Wayne, saying:

"Wayne, these snacks are from Master Keira. They were brought back from the palace. Miss Keira asked me to inquire if you have time these two days. She hopes you can visit her mansion at some point. Master Keira has something to discuss with you."

Wayne took the exquisitely shaped bamboo basket and opened it. Inside were various high-end snacks filled with honey and preserved fruits, emitting a sweet aroma.

In this day and age, honey and sugar are luxury goods, making it difficult for ordinary people to enjoy sweet treats like these.

Wayne selected a dessert resembling a honey cream cake, placed it in Maisie's hand, and said with a smile:

"This is for you, Maisie. It seems you enjoy these desserts very much. Please tell Keira that I'll visit tonight. We can discuss matters in detail then."

Maisie's face grew even redder as she accepted the cake. Instead of refusing, she nodded shyly, bid goodbye softly, and left quickly.

Watching Maisie leave, Wayne sighed lightly. After all, Maisie was just an ordinary person. In a few years, turmoil would sweep the world, and war would engulf the entire north. At that time, no one knew what fate awaited her. Even Keira, the sorceress, might face public execution on the gallows in the future.

Returning home, Wayne spotted Lala in his kitchen. Not having seen the little godling for a few days, Wayne noticed that Lala had learned to use human kitchen tools. Squatting next to a small stool, Lala was scraping scales off a fish with a knife. Chopped side dishes were in a pot nearby, indicating preparation for a pot of fish stock.

After seeing Wayne, the little guy immediately showed a happy smile on her face. With short legs, she ran up to Wayne, raised her head, and greeted with a smile, saying:

"Wayne, you're back! I've been waiting for you for a long time. You've been out for several days this time."

"By the way, I took care of your home for you. I watered those flowers and those young trees every day. I even cleaned the kitchen for you."

"But I'm too short, and I can't reach some places, so I had to use magic to clean it."

Seeing Lala with a somewhat proud expression, Wayne smiled and touched her head, then put the basket of snacks that Maisie gave him in front of Lala.

"Thank you for your hard work, Lala. This is a thank-you gift. I still have some candies in my room. You can take them back with you later and share them with your family."

The little guy was indeed too short, only half a head taller than the handle of the basket. She was pure-hearted. After hearing Wayne's words, she didn't know what politeness meant. Desserts captivated her with their honey and fruit aromas.

"Ah! It's a cake! I saw it in a book. Thank you, Wayne."

She swallowed greedily, but she still obediently put the lid on the bamboo basket, ready to take it home and enjoy this delicacy with her family.

Wayne looked at Lala and thought of her brother, Fitz, who was polluted by the evil god Dagon and asked:

"By the way, Lala, how is your brother now? Has the goddess healed the curse on him?"

Hearing this, Lala tilted her head and thought for a while before saying:

"I don't know if it's cured, but my brother has become completely different."

"He is taller than my dad, has great strength, his skin has turned light blue, and he can stay in the water all the time."

"However, my brother hates the acolytes in the lake very much now and goes to the underwater city of the acolytes every day to make trouble for them."

"My father later warned him that there was still a clone of the evil god Dagon sleeping in that underwater city, so he should not go deep, so now he is looking for those half-acolytes who are alone in the lake every day."

After hearing about Fitz's recent situation and the underwater city, Wayne's heart moved immediately.

He has received so much help from the goddess recently, that this should be a way for him to temporarily repay the favor of the goddess of the lake.

The evil god Dagon is the enemy of the goddess, and cleaning up the minions of the evil god is also cleaning up the enemies of the goddess.

Although the number of acolytes in an underwater city must be unusual, and it would be difficult to clean them up completely, he hasn't had any major commissions recently, so he can do them as daily tasks.

Wayne touched Lala's head and said with a smile, "Lala, after you go back today, make an appointment with your brother for me and tell him that tomorrow night, I will meet him near the pier of the Fisher King, is that okay?"

For this kind of request, the little guy agreed without even thinking about it. Then, she turned her head to look at the fish soup she hadn't finished, blinked her eyes, and said sweetly:

"No problem, Wayne, but I really want to drink your fish soup again. Can you help me finish this dish?"

...

In the evening, Wayne took a shower, changed into a black dress, and went to the jewelry store to buy a necklace of gemstones worth two hundred Oren and a large bouquet of colorful flowers, and arrived at Keira's mansion.

Maisie had already been waiting at the door and welcomed him into the living room with a smile on her face.

What Wayne didn't expect was that Keira was not the only woman in the living room; there was also a beautiful woman with red hair in a pretty purple dress, sitting opposite to Keira.

The two were drinking red wine and eating the exquisite cake on the table, smiling and talking about something.

After seeing Maisie leading Wayne in, Keira stood up, holding Wayne's arm with a burst of fragrance and a smile on her face, and brought him to the red-haired female sorceress, introducing him with a smile:

"Wayne, this beautiful lady is Temeria's royal advisor, Triss Merigold of Maribor."

"She is a gifted sorceress and a dear friend of mine."

"Just so you two can get to know each other."