"I demand you let me grab your magnificent breasts!"
"No, let me be!"
"Insolence! Old Hag, tell this "no one" to accept my demand immediately. I won`t repeat myself."
"What is the meaning of this?!" Cathe started, leading Ellyn, Selea and her ladies-in-waiting to meet Lunor for a morning walk in the royal gardens, not even out of the guest building yet.
"None of your business. Get lost!"
"Old Hag! Don`t let the big-chested one go! Why are you just standing there?"
"You do not command others around here, countess. Stop bothering the guests or face consequences!" Cathe warned.
"Slap the rude bitch!" the countess commanded the "Old Hag".
...
"He, he... I`m very sorry... I will act with more respect... when you are around, Lady Miral," the countess promised, smiling the best she could, both her cheeks still red from the two slaps she got even before getting put over Cathe`s knee. Her face was red. Her other cheeks... well, she will be remembering this encounter for days, just like Ellyn will. Those were some nice cheeks. Very much to her liking.
As she`s learned, this was Countess Valcor, a southerner high noble visiting the royal palace to attend Lunor`s tea party taking place today.
Idreyn has been seeing her mom off and Marys has been with Lunor already, so luckily for those two, they`ve missed the unpleasant situation.
"How did she not recognise you? Children of southerner high nobles are raised by Aspions," Ellyn wondered.
"Ariade has been a countess since before 3. She has not been raised here and... her situation and upbringing... let`s call it... difficult."
"I may have been the first person ever to have disciplined her. Imagine getting raised by someone that should, in theory, listen to your commands. This is what Ariade does, when she wants something."
"And the master mage she called "Old Hag"?"
"She is actually only above 50 and only here to guard her. From both enemies and boys."
"So young..."
This was the morning of March 21st, 1218.
"Idreyn, now that you know the girls, we will visit the next person responsible for the three of you, starting the day after tomorrow. An envoy of Eastern Empire is only days away now and the number of meetings that need to take place beforehand due to preparations is not small."
"I was hoping to be able to spend more time with you, Cathe."
"I`m not moving to the other side of the kingdom. I will be right beside Lunor and still meet you daily,"
"We will be meeting with Princess Lunor daily?"
"Yes. A morning walk in the royal gardens and then a spellcasting session in the afternoon."
"She`ll be spending so much time with us? Thank you for the incredible opportunity, Cathe. I will not fail to mention it in my letters."
Something that has become an expected daily occurrence for the two of them, still seemed like the most precious thing to the lower noble.If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.
"Cathe? What a pleasant surprise!" Ruelm with his guards met the group of 9 on their way to the mysterious person who`ll take charge of Ellyn, Selea and Idreyn, starting the day after tomorrow.
"Ruelm, I would not mind conversing with you, but we need to meet with someone soon and hurry to meet with Lunor next."
"No problem, I have time to walk with you right now."
"Hm... you are new here, the girl that is suspiciously close to Miss Arte," he said.
Idreyn has really been a little too close to her for some time now. She`d say that the lower noble does not see a problem with walking in a way that her and Ellyn`s arms and hands touch on every other step, as if "by complete accident". Every time Ellyn moved a little further away, the girl moved closer until she simply gave up and smiled at her newest friend, thinking that this must be some weird habit of hers. An awkward attempt at befriending Ellyn, possibly?
"Ruelm Argela, this is Idreyn Isloe, daughter of Baron Isloe and our guest," Cathe said, a little annoyed by knowing what he`s about to ask next, but trying to not be rude.
"Say, you wouldn`t happen to prefer girls when it comes to relationships and sex, Lady Isloe, would you?"
"No, I don`t, Lord Argela. I also pledged to not marry or take an official lover before becoming a master mage and won`t break my pledge."
"Ruelm, I think I know exactly the kind of person you are looking for... She should be demanding some girl to let her grab a body part somewhere near the lake at the moment, I would say. There is a master mage by her side, easy to notice. Hurry up, because she might move away before you find her."
"Grab a body part? Tell me more," he asked with a spark of interest in his eyes and tone.
The young man wasted no time and ran towards the lake the moment she mentioned big breasts.
"Ruelm also loves big breasts and got spanked by me in the past. They`ll get along well enough."
"Isn`t it dangerous to let a man near her? Ariade has a master mage as a guard," Selea pointed out.
"Don`t worry. Unlike Ariade, Ruelm knows what restraint and consent mean. She is also not his type, when it comes to body. What I meant was that they might become friends and influence one another in an unexpected way."
"Like Countess Valcor also undressing and getting chased by her guard?"
"She does that too, on better weather than this. Them running together would not have been unexpected, had it been a little warmer. I meant that she will have someone to talk with and may somewhat calm down and stop bothering others."
Hm. Are all nobles weird in some way? Would Idreyn stop with that dangling arm of hers?! She said she`s not into girls, so what`s her deal?
Ellyn only smiled at her again. It may be the girl`s way of getting closer. Better not ruin it. She has an important task from Lunor herself.
"This is one of the Laur Group`s buildings. The person I`m about to introduce to you is a female level 5 mercenary, who speaks our language. Don`t believe her if she pretends it`s not the case. This assignment of hers is not what she had in mind when asking for a new one, so try not to be overly reliant on her or it will get on her nerves easily and the woman might snap. Rillen will protect you, even if only by her perpetually angry look and wearing Laur Group`s mercenary level 5 uniform. No one around messes with them."
"Cathe! What brings you here? Lady Isloe, it is a pleasure to see you again," a handsome, but obviously a powerfully built redheaded mercenary master mage with a strong foreign accent and a big smile approached them.
"Master Tercent, I wanted to talk with Rillen. She is assigned to guard these three girls starting the day after tomorrow, while your squad is staying here."
"That seems like a bad idea. Are you sure?" he said after looking at the trio.
Ellyn with Selea glanced at Cathe, worried.
"As long as the girls don`t anger her too much, her temper should only be to our advantage. In any case, she is the only female mercenary of that level who knows the language and has no day assignment at the moment."
"I admire the confidence in your plan. Stay brave, girls and follow me."
What does he mean? Is this dangerous?
"Is it necessary for our guard to be a woman? Master Tercent also seems reliable," Selea asked Cathe while walking up the stairs, obviously worried about the mercenary girl no one would dare to mess with.
"No, only a girl. Master Tercent has 9 female level 5s in his squad and they will be at the capital for a month, but Rillen is the only one who knows the language. Don`t worry. She has all we need and more. Don`t rub her the wrong way and all will be fine. I believe in you."
"There must be more female mercenaries than just those in his squad, then."
"Another one that knows the language is a talented level 2 aura user from City of Aspion, but the girl has a terrible sense of direction. Not only is she a little too young, lacking the experience, but it won`t be exactly sending a threatening message to walk hand in hand with her so that she doesn`t get lost."
"Does it have to be a mercenary?"
"Yes."
Great...