The sunlight bounced off the bright marble walls, casting a blinding glow around the main hall of the mansion. As X was tidying up the base of the staircase, a flash of red suddenly passed by the corned of her eye.
"AAAUGH!!! Ow- Ack- Gah-!" Uttering multiple exclamations of pain, the master of the house tumbled down a few steps before barreling off of the stairs and falling straight down to the ground. Instead of rushing to the clamor like the others, X looked upwards, exchanging glances with Lei, who plopped his right foot onto the top of the balcony railing.
Contrary to the normally cool and composed demeanor Lei put up, the young man currently looked both panicked and pissed. The hair that was at least somewhat combed down before now resembled an unpruned bush, and the state of his clothing wasn't much better. Even so, the young man had his sword attached to his waist, still exuding an air of strength.
On the other hand, it was nearly impossible to tell if the mess that Alfred looked like was the result of falling from a nine meter tall balcony or simply because he also had just woken up. But before anyone could inquire about the situation, Lei jumped down from the balcony and punted Alfred another few meters back, slamming his unfortunate back against the door. Swiftly, Lei grabbed a butter knife from one of the passing servants and stabbed it into the side of the door, barely missing Alfred's cheek.
"You really have some nerve." For some reason, Lei's calm and stable voice was infinitely more terrifying.
Alfred shook his head and turned it away from the knife. "I- It was a simple mistake! I didn't mean it that way!"
"You expect me to believe your excuses when these past few days you've been acting like this? Has everything been one of your ploys? Are we that expendable to you?"
"Waahhh!!! I'm the master of this place, anyways! Why am I getting ordered around by you???" He retorted harshly, as if a spark of courage had lit up in Alfred's head.
"Do you have a death wish?" Lei stabbed the door again, effectively shutting Alfred up. "Don't evade the question. I can't tell what you nobles are ever thinking, so leave me out of it. I am still a free person, even if to you I have always be-"
"Young master and sir. Would you care for some breakfast?"
Assisted by the other servants, X pulled Lei and Alfred apart and ushered them to seats at the table. After a period of awkward silence, Seven brought a plate of food for each of them.
"Today... Crepe. Omelette. Cheese," she said, before retreating into the back of the kitchen.
"Seven seems to be in a good mood today. Did anything happen?"
"Yes, master. It's because of the holy priestess. It appears that Seven has taken quite a liking to the guests."
In between the clinking of silverware against the plates, Alfred attempted to make small talk, but each time he was met with a pitiful silence until X responded to end his misery. Whether it was the time of day, weather, interests, or possible missions, Alfred was ignored completely.
"Lei."
Clink.
"I can explain."
Slice.
"I just wanted to know why you hate them so much!"
"..."
"Are you mad?"
"Master, it seems that Sir Shan does not wish to talk."
Suddenly, Lei put down his utensils and got up, turning his back towards Alfred.
"X, you shouldn't keep responding to him. Let him stay desperate, so he might be able to sympathize with a tenth of what you have gone through."
"Lei! It's really just a misunderstanding!" Alfred motioned to grab Lei's arm, preventing his escape.
"And I really can't believe you anymore. What a master of deception you are, keeping up the facade even now. Actually, since we're here, I'll answer your senseless question. For everyone's ears." Violently ripping his arm from Alfred, Lei's tone was grim yet fierce. "I don't care whether or not you are loyal to your king, but to ally with the Empire after all you've done... After all of this! Who was I to trust in your values...? Of course a noble like you couldn't fathom what atrocities they could commit! Of course you wouldn't know how they treat our kind! To them, we are tools and resources, cast away the moment we lose our use. At least in Diverre, we are granted the mercy of death."
Lei stormed out of the dining hall into the garden, making a beeline towards the exit. Still calling out, Alfred stumbled after him.
"Um... so I'm assuming this is a bad time to interject...?"
Descending from the staircase were the two guests. Upon seeing Juno, Seven quickly ran up the stairs and pulled Juno down to the dining table. A few other servants rushed to set the table, and within a minute no signs of any past conflict were visible.
"Today... Crepe. Omelette. Cheese."
"Wait, are we ignoring what just happened?" Juno looked towards the direction that Alfred and Lei had run off to, gesturing her confusion at the maids.
"Today... Crepe. Omelette. Cheese," Seven repeated, once again escaping back into the kitchen.
With no one answering her, Juno started to dig into her breakfast. The crepe was sweet, drizzled in a decent amount of syrup, and the omelette was delectably fluffy. The type of cooking here reminded her of the food at home, but that was pretty much the story with all the food in this world. There was also plumbing, and other technologies that didn't really make sense for the setting, though Juno was glad to have them anyways.
"You mustn't worry too much, Miss Juno," X finally gave an answer to Juno, slightly chuckling. "It seems that Master has failed in his attempt to break the news to Sir Shan."
"News?"
"Ah... Well, I do not believe I am allowed to share it, but I can say that it puts the residents of this mansion in an... awfully awkward position." X smiled at Juno and Iliya, who were almost finished with their breakfast. "Once you are done, we can go visit the Master directly to inquire. I'm sure Master is willing to impart at least some information with you."
After eating, Juno and Iliya were brought outside to the garden. Nothing had changed, except for a trail of charred grass leading to the side of the garden. Every so often, the group would encounter a small fire, which was then quickly doused by Iliya's water magic. Following the trail of destruction, they wound up in front of the fountain.
Compared to the fountain that Iliya had been in last night, this... pile of rubble was unrecognizable. The various decorative pillars were broken all around, causing the stream to blast water absolutely everywhere.
Suddenly, X exclaimed, "Oh, in the water!"
At first glance, Alfred and Lei were nowhere to be found, but once they heard X's remark, Iliya and Juno walked over to inspect the ruined pool in the fountain. As they got closer, the figures of two people lying side by side could be seen floating on the surface of the water. The water had drowned out the sound from further away, but a faint trace of conversation gradually became louder as well.
"How can you be both intelligent and stupid?"
"If you'd just let me finish my sentence before kicking me down a flight of stairs, we wouldn't be in this predicament!"
"What in the world made you think it was a good idea to word it that way?! And don't use magic to prevent someone from leaving! Fire magic in a garden? Really?"
"Don't talk as if you didn't use your magic either! You better pay for all the damages to my garden!"
"Our finances are shared."
"Wh- Oh, hey!"
The trio looked over the fountain, making eye contact with Alfred and Lei, who both lay face-up on the surface of the water. Also floating in the water was Lei's Sword and what looked to be the remains of some poor wooden stick.
"Master, have you sorted it out with Sir Shan?" X took the initiative to pull the two out of the water, then ushered the group back into the mansion. "I will see what we can do to mitigate the damages. In the time being, please stay within the boundaries of the mansion."
"Hold on, I'll help with reparations." Iliya rushed back outside and stood by X.
"Miss Iliya, you are a guest. I cannot trouble you wit-"
"I may be a guest, but I have the ability to command all divine energy." With a wave of her arm, Iliya flashed her magic. "It will make restoring the greenery possible."
Reluctantly, X nodded, leaving Juno alone with Alfred and Lei.
The two were still arguing and still drenched. With each passing remark, Juno felt as if the content of their speech was derailing more and more.
"Hey, um!" With all of the force in her arms, Juno wedged herself in between and pushed the two parties away from each other. "Since you're still soaked, maybe you should change clothes first?"
Lei scoffed. "Fine, whatever."
"Juno, have a servant escort you to the central office and wait for me. I guess I have a few things I need you to know."
With that order, Alfred went up the stairs, with Lei behind him. After both were gone, Seven popped up next to Juno.
"Follow me."
this is great
Thanks for the chapter
Such an over eager servant, wonder what Seven's game is, or did she just take a liking to Juno.
Don't bother with schedules, they are nice if writing is your job though, otherwise it's only needless stress.