I stepped through a portal into an empty mansion. If Faeyna saw such a place, she would be upset. I had left her to care for the Chalm mansion. After the city fell to the Maid’s Lament, the mansion had fallen into disrepair, so it would take some time for her to bring it back to standard. Thus, I had left her there. However, the Chalm mansion wasn’t the only one that had been abandoned. There was also the Capital City mansion which had been left to gather dust for two months.

She was supposed to hire maids to help her handle the two properties, but no one who applied had ever met her standards. Then again, how did one meet the standards of the Maid Hero? It seemed impossible. So, she was doing everything by herself. Two properties were already far too much for her to handle. What would happen when the castle was finished? Also, there was likely a time she’d want to go training with me too, giving her even less time to manage the home.

At some point, she’d have to let someone else take over at least one of the properties. Perhaps, she could get a young apprentice that she could teach from a young age? Such a thing was a possibility. In the meantime, one of the properties was always going to be neglected. At least Prince Edward hadn’t given the property away after I was presumed dead. That would have been irritating.

The pair of us walked out of the mansion. My target was the Slaver’s Guild. I barely took a step out of the gate when I heard a familiar voice.

“So, you are alive after all. I heard as much.”

I turned to see a young boy standing there with his arms crossed. Behind him was a familiar-looking maid. They had pointed ears and a childlike appearance. They were allegedly closely related to elves, although now that I knew more about the world, I’d say that they looked like a cross between dwarves and elves. They possessed the pale skin and pointy ears of an elf but the short and child-like features of a dwarf.

“Pait. It’s been a while. Have you gotten shorter?”

“Pfft…” Dav covered her mouth as she spat out, causing Pait to shoot her a glare before turning back to me.

“Aren’t you just compensating for something?” He shot back. “I know you have a lot of women, but when you said you’d be enough man for all of them, I don’t think they meant by the pound.”

I felt shaking on my shoulder, but when I glanced at Celeste, she was distinctly not looking in my direction. I smiled darkly and glared back at Pait.

“I’d teach you a lesson, but I don’t bully children.”

“You know, I feel a bit bad for you up there. You’re probably not getting very much air.”

The pair of us stared daggers at each other, and then both put our heads back and laughed. I held out my hand and he clasped it.

“It’s been too long.”

“You never stop by.”

“Boys are weird.” Dav sighed.

“Mm! Mm!” Celeste nodded.