Zeke stood in front of the window, looking down at the hustle and bustle. The constant flurry of movements was balm to his nerves. His biggest fear had been that something in the estate might have gone wrong during his absence.
However, nobody seemed alarmed or panicked in the least. This was a good sign. The fact that he had even been worried was strange in and of itself. He really should be putting more trust in his people. After all, he had little to nothing to do with the daily goings on of the estate. And this was ignoring the fact that David had been running the household for years before he had ever shown up.
Zeke's gaze wandered over the different sections. From the busy workshop area to the newly built spell repository. From the gardens of the mansion over to the training fields. Gradually, a content smile spread across his face. He had come far — no, they had come far! He had not done this alone.
It had only been a few short months since his household had arrived in the city. But instead of the safe haven they had expected, they were greeted by a deserted ruin. On top of that, they were saddled with a crushing debt. Day after day, people left, assured in their belief that the family was done for — akin to rats fleeing a sinking ship.
But what about now? Where were they all? And where was he?
His smile widened as he counted three completed Gondolas next to the workshop. They were finished and ready for delivery at the end of the month. This would be another 300000 gold for his family. By now, mountains of gold were piling up in the treasury, and Zeke would have to expand the room or invest his money elsewhere…
[Notice]
Somebody is approaching rapidly. Identification matches 99.5% as David.
Before he could even react, the door was flung open. David stormed into the room with an uncharacteristically cheerful expression. "You are finally awake, young lord."
A smile spread across Zeke's face as well. "Thanks for worrying about me."
[Notice]
David visited your room 89 times during the past two weeks. He is ranked 4th on the list of most frequent visitors. The first spot is held by Maya with 193 visits.
Zeke took that in, idly wondering about the number 2 and 3 spots as he stepped away from the window. "Did anything of note happen while I was… indisposed?"
He regretted the question right away as he saw David's cheerful expression transform into a professional demeanor. "Indeed, young lord. A lot has happened since."
Zeke made his way toward the lounge and motioned for David to take a seat as well. The older man complied and took the spot across from him. "Can you walk me through what happened?"
"We were worried when all the guests had already left but there was no trace of you. We were just about to force our way in when Mr. Albert Thorsten informed us about your duel against the young miss," David recounted with a twinkle in his eye.
"Don't give me that look, David!" Zeke protested. "I had no intention of causing any kind of problems this time. It just… it just happened, ok?"
"Certainly, young lord."
"I am being serious here."
"So am I, young lord," David replied, but the slight curve to his lips betrayed his real feelings on the matter.
Zeke rolled his eyes. Since when was David so playful? "What happened next?"
"We were informed that you were exhausted by the fight and were given a chance to rest," David explained. "But when you were brought out several hours later, you were in terrible condition. You were screaming and thrashing and could barely stay conscious for more than a moment. At first, we feared the worst…"
It must have been quite a shock for David and the other guards to find him in such a condition. He had been the picture of health only hours earlier but was returned to them in an unresponsive state. He didn't even want to know how he would have reacted in David's place.
"Fortunately," David continued, "Lady Eternexus was patient with us, despite the high tension and… let's say… explosive tempers of some."
Zeke groaned. "What happened?"
"Nothing major… but somebody might have made some threats."
"Ohh no," Zeke said. "Let me guess… Margret?"
David shook his head.
"Huh, I didn't expect Linus to be such a hothead."
David didn't respond, but Zeke could swear he saw a light blush color his cheeks. For some reason, the man also seemed to avoid his gaze. Strange, why would he… wait a moment!
"IT WAS YOU! You made the threats, didn't you, David?!"
"Anyway," the man continued, completely ignoring Zeke's question. "As I was saying: Despite the high tension, lady Eternexus was patient and managed to calm the situation down. She explained that your condition was the consequence of a Spirit Summoning. She also assured us that this was quite normal for certain contracts. In situations like yours, it could take up to three weeks to stabilize."
Zeke nodded. By now, he had realized the reason for this development. The condition of the contract was to have his summon always active. Naively, he had assumed his word would be enough.
However, the way the condition had been implemented was vastly different from his expectation. In accordance with their agreement, the ability to dispel or otherwise unsummon his contracted spirit had been taken from him altogether. He could no more get rid of her than he could of his own Soul.
[Notice]
My deepest apologies for the inconvenience. I guarantee that it has never been my intention to cheat host into an unfavorable arrangement through dishonest means. This can all be attributed to a failure to properly communicate on my part.
"Don't worry, Akasha. I don't blame you," Zeke thought. Out loud he said, "Yes, I failed to take into account the possibility of this happening when I agreed to the ritual. My apologies, this must have put quite the burden on you."
David shook his head. "It was nothing, young Lord. But you really should have informed us beforehand. It would have saved us all… quite a bit of embarrassment."
Zeke stifled a grin as he nodded earnestly. "What happened after we returned to the estate?"
"Your family was quite distraught to see you in such a state, especially young lady Maya. She was glued to your bed for the first few days. However, your condition improved daily and we all stopped worrying about a week ago, by then, you were sleeping peacefully."
Zeke grimaced. He could just imagine how worried Maya would have been. He had never wanted her to see him in such a state. To her, he wanted to be the invincible older brother who never got hurt and never stumbled. He could not let things like this keep happening to him.
"How about the business, anything out of order?" Zeke inquired.
"No, the business is doing spectacularly," David said, his own expression lightening at the change of topic. "Mr. Robins leads the workshop with an iron fist. Any problems that crop up are usually solved within the hour. But Mr. Robins did inform me that he is running low on Enchantments. If you had slept for another week, we might have been forced to delay production."
This was all according to schedule. If anything, Jettero was a bit ahead. He would have to spend a couple of days in his workshop in order to fill up their supply of Enchantments.
[Notice]
I have a few suggestions to increase Rune production. I estimate that a 300% to 400% increase in output can realistically be expected upon implementation.
Zeke's eyes widened. That was a four to five times greater output. Those suggestions could not be anything minor. It would have to be a complete overhaul of his entire approach. "We'll talk about that later, Akasha. I am very interested to hear those ideas."
David took no heed of his change in expression and continued his report. "On the administrative side, your mother is doing most of the work. She has now taken charge of about 75% of my former responsibilities. Everything regarding staff, finances, and correspondence is now handled by The Radiant Trifecta."
Zeke raised a single brow, "The Radiant Trifecta? Why have I never heard that name before?"
"The name has only appeared in recent days but is already commonly used by most of the estate," David explained. "The name refers to the three women in charge of day-to-day operations: Your mother Mia, as well as Lena, and Marissa."
"Aren't Lena and Marissa your assistants?" Zeke asked curiously.
"They were," David agreed, "but they have now officially abandoned me, and switched over to your mother's camp."
"You don't seem overly distraught about that."
David smiled. "Of course not! It means that your mother has finally gained their trust and they don't feel the need to consult with me anymore. This is what I had hoped for."
Lena and Marissa had been working for the family for years. If the two Mind Mages felt like his mother was ready to take that step, then Zeke would trust their decision.
"This leads us to the last part of my report," David continued. "There are a couple of matters requiring a decision."
Zeke focused his full attention on David. "What are they?"
David took out three letters from his neatly pressed suit and put them on the table in front of him. "The first one is from the Bloodletter family," David explained, pointing at a dark red envelope. "It is an official request for you to rejoin the family."
"Bloodletter… My father's house? I thought they had disowned him. What right do they have to demand my return?" Zeke asked.
David shrugged. "They don't demand anything, yet. The letter is merely a request."
Zeke thought about it for a moment. "Let's ignore it. This will delay them for longer than outright refusing. If we are lucky, this will solve itself with time."
David nodded and pointed at the second envelope. "This is an official notice from the Office of Administration. It's the confirmation for the spots in the Advancement Ceremony."
Zeke's eyes widened. "I completely forgot about that! Did I miss it?"
"It's the day after tomorrow. But we were worried if you would make it in time."
Zeke sighed in relief. "Don't scare me like that. Of course, we are still going."
David nodded and pointed at the last envelope, his expression turning somber. "This last letter is regarding a rather concerning development. There is going to be an emergency conference between the empire and the leaders of the alliance here in Tradespire. Miss Lara Sonnenstrahl sent us the notice."
"Ohh? What prompted this?" This news didn't really worry him. After all, the alliance loved holding meetings and conferences. This had probably happened hundreds of times already. The only noteworthy difference was that the empire would be sending a representative as well.
"I didn't have the contacts to find out for certain, but there are rumors…"
This managed to pique his interest. "What rumors?"
"The Seers of Seraven made a prophecy," David stated. "From what I could gather, it doesn't paint a promising picture of the future for the alliance and especially, Equinox and Invocatia."
Zeke's expression slowly turned severe. From how he understood the role of the Seers, they didn't often get involved in the affairs of the world. They only made announcements about the most horrendous of tragedies. The fact that they warned of the coming war made it likely that this would have far-reaching consequences for everyone. "Did Lara confirm the Rumors?"
"I did not contact her," David replied.
"What? Why not?"
David sighed. "Young lord, the von Hohenheim house is not allied with the Sonnenstrahl family, nor do we have any other official allies. You have a personal relationship with Miss Sonnenstrahl, but that doesn't give me or anybody else the right to demand her time."
Zeke grimaced. This was right, just because he was on friendly terms with Lara didn't mean that they were allies. She had made that abundantly clear the last time they spoke. But this brought up another question. "If Lara went through the trouble of informing us, then there must be more behind that meeting."
"That's the reason I consider this to be a concerning development. The content of the letter suggests that this might be the start of the war. At least, Miss Sonnenstrahl believes so."
Zeke's gut clenched. He had hoped to have more time, more time before open war broke out. As he was now, there was very little he could do to oppose the empire. He wasn't ready yet and neither was his house.
"When is that meeting?"
David sighed. "The meeting is scheduled for early next week. Five days from now."
Zeke nodded slowly. There was no point getting sidetracked by something he had no control over. He would attend the Advancement Ceremony in two days and try his best to find out what he could to help his people advance. As for the conference… whatever would happen would happen.