"So, this is the home of the Great Sage. Or rather, manor." Hildebrand murmured to himself, pulling his horse to a stop in front of the manor around late afternoon. "Hopefully she'll agree to speak with and help me. And hopefully I remember my manners and etiquette."
Dismounting, he walked up and knocked on the large front door. It was opened almost immediately. Standing there, one hand on the sword at her side, ready to draw it if needed was a feminine android, wearing a dark blue maid's outfit. "Who goes there?" It asked in a flat mechanical voice.
"Ah..." Hildebrand gasped, surprised that the android was able to speak. 'I've only ever heard of one speaking android, and it belonged to the king. And even then, it could only say a few words. Though, I guess it's not that surprising for one of the legendary heroes.' He realized.
"I'm Hildebrand, a swordsman."
"And what business do you have here?"
"I was sent by King Andres of Dyfed to speak with the Great Sage."
"Understood. Please wait here for a minute." It said before closing the door.
'It's not going to invite me in?' He wondered, petting the horse, which had up to stand next to him. After a couple minutes of waiting, the door opened again.
This time, a tall woman with long brown, dark grey, and black hair, and large matching wings in place of arms wearing a white maid dress opened the door.
"Greetings, may I inquire as to your name and purpose?" She asked.
"Hello." Hildebrand said, bowing. "My name is Hildebrand and I was sent here by King Andres of Dyfed to speak to the Great Sage."
"Very well. C2005, take his horse to the stable." She said, turning to the original android, who was standing behind her.
"Yes ma'am." The android said, curtsying before leading the horse away.
"Please, come in." The woman said, stepping to the side and gestured for me to enter.
Hildebrand paused, looking her over. 'Is this safe? It doesn't seem like she'd attack me, but there's something about her that seems... dangerous.'
"You don't need to worry. As long as you don't harm anyone here, I won't hurt you." She said, seeming to read my mind, a slight smile on her face.
"Ah, right." Hildebrand said, walking through the open door.
"If you follow me to the sitting room, we can discuss your visit." She said, walking towards another door.
"Ah, actually, I'd prefer to speak to the Great Sage. If that's possible." He said, following her.
"Unfortunately the Great Sage is currently indisposed at the moment." She explained, leading him into a room furnished with various chairs, sofas, and tables. "Please take a seat for now, and I will take you to her once she's available."
"Very well." He said, sitting down in a chair.
She sat down across from me and rang a small bell. "For now, would you care for some tea?"
"Ah, yes, thank you."
"Of course. Oh," She gasped slightly, putting a hand on her chest. "I apologize, I never introduced myself. I am Nesta."
"It's nice to meet you."
'Nesta huh? I wonder if she's named after the Nightmare of the Skies.' Hildebrand thought.
"Indeed." She replied, turning to accept a cup of tea from another android. "Thank you."
"Thanks." Hildebrand said, taking the cup of tea offered to him. "It's delicious." He said after taking a sip.
"Anyway, I assume you're here about the Demon Lord breaking it's seal."
"You know?!" He exclaimed, shocked. "I thought only the highest ranking officers in the kingdom were told!"
"As the one who created the seal, it's only natural that the mistress would have a way of monitoring the seal." Nesta explained.
"I guess that's pretty obvious, huh?" He said, scratching his head. "Well, I'm glad that the Great Sage is aware. She's probably preparing right now, huh?"
"So, was alerting us all the business you had?" She asked, staring at him over the rim of her tea cup.
"No, I've been asked to fight alongside her."
"Just you?"
"Of course not. The kingdom is gathering others. But, they wanted to do this quickly, and to avoid any unnecessary attention."
"I see." She said. "Now, not to be rude, but may I ask if you're aware of why you in particular were chosen for this?"
"Ah, sorry. I was actually wondering that myself."
"Hmm..."
'She totally thinks I'm useless.' Hildebrand thought to himself. "A-anyway, when do you think the Great Sage will be ready to fight?"
She paused for a minute. 'Huh? Is she going to say that The Great Sage won't work with me or something?' Hildebrand wondered nervously.
"Unfortunately, that is not my decision." She said finally, putting her cup on the table. "For now, it is already getting late, so I assume you will be spending the night, as well as joining us for dinner."
"Ah, t-that would be great. Thank you." He said, worried.
"Is everything ready?" Nesta said, turning to look at the android who had walked into the room. This one was wearing a red maid outfit. The android nodded. "Good." Nesta said, standing up and looking at him. "I am going to go fetch the mistress now, do you want to come with me?"
"Yes, if that's alright." Hildebrand said, standing up.
"Very well, please follow me." She said, leading the way upstairs, through two rooms, and to a large pair of double doors.
"Here we are." She said, opening the doors. "Mistress, it is time to wake up."
"Mmmmnnnn..." A small, sleepy voice said from the giant bed in the middle of the room.
"Mistress, please get up."
"'on't wanna."
"It is already dinner time."
"Dinner?!" The girl exclaimed, sitting up quickly.
"That's The Great Sage?!" Hildebrand exclaimed, staring at the young girl. She looked to be about five years old, with dark grey hair and fur.
"But, I heard The Great Sage's fur is pure white." Hildbrand said, confused.
"Huh? Who're you?" The girl asked, looking at him. But, before he could answer, she started talking again. "Nevermind, doesn't matter. Dinner!" She said, leaping out of the bed and running past Nesta and Hildebrand, and out the door.
"Wha-?!" Hildebrand exclaimed, moving out of her way.
"My apologies." Nesta sighed. "Many years ago, the mistress sealed away most of her power. Since then, she has had the mind, and body, of a five year old. It was an unexpected, and unfortunate side effect."
"What?! Then there's no way she can fight the Demon Lord!"
"Oh?"
"Even if she was once known as The Great Sage, if her power is gone, no, even if she had all her power, a five year old cannot be asked to fight!" Hildebrand exclaimed.
"Hm, clearly you feel quite strongly about this." Nesta said. "However, there's no real need to worry. Her power is only sealed. It can of course be unsealed."
"Oh, thank the Gods." Hildebrand sighed. "So, how do we unseal her power?"
"Only the mistress knows."
"Then let's go ask her." He suggested.
"Indeed." Nesta agreed, leading the way back downstairs, across the great hall, and into what seemed to be a dinning room.
Inside, the Great Sage was bouncing up and down excitedly in a chair as an android placed a plate of food in front of her.
"Thank you for the food!" She practically yelled before digging in.
"Five years old huh?" Hildebrand muttered to himself before approaching her. "Pardon me Great Sage, but I've come a fair distance to speak with you. My name is Hildebrand and-"
"Don't care, it can wait till after dinner." She said barely stopping eating, cutting him off.
"B-but..." He stuttered, startled and confused.
"Mistress, don't talk with your mouth full." Nesta reprimanded. "Sir Hildebrand, unfortunately, it's no use. She will not speak about business until she has finished eating. Instead, please join us." She added, gesturing to another android as it walked into the dining room carrying two more plates of food.
"Alright." Hildebrand sighed, sitting down across from The Great Sage and eating the food that was placed in front of him.
'Strange.' He thought as he ate. 'With how she's acting, I expected the food to be amazing. But, it's just average. Or rather, it's kinda bland. Maybe they ran out of spices?'
"Yum!" The Great Sage exclaimed about thirty minutes later, her plate mostly cleared. "That was so good!"
"Excuse me Great Sage, but if you're done..." Hildebrand spoke up.
"Oh right. Who are you?" The Great Sage asked, turning to look at him.
"I'm Hildebrand, and I've been sent here by King Andres of Dyfed to request your assistance." He explained.
"Assistance? With what?" She asked, surprising him.
"W-well, with subduing the Demon Lord. I thought you already knew about his return."
"Hmm...? Oh yeah, I think I remember Nesta saying something about that." She responded after a minute.
"Yes Mistress." Nesta affirmed with a sigh.
"As one who has previously subdued him, we hope for your leadership, Great Sage."
"Ugh." She groaned, tilting her head back dramatically. "Enough with the Great Sage stuff already! It's so annoying and stuffy! Just call me Gwyn."
"What, but... that seems really rude! I mean, you're one of the Legendary Heroes, one of the saviors of the world, and-!" He started to exclaim.
"I said, call me Gwyn!" She shot back, slamming her hands down on the table; and for a moment she released her magic power, pushing down on Hildebrand's shoulders.
'T-this pressure! It's like I'm standing in front of the king!' he thought, astonished.
"A-alright, Lady Gwyn." He said. 'Even with most of her power sealed, she's still this strong?! Amazing. No wonder she's known as the Great Sage. With her, defeating the Demon Lord is actually possible!' He thought excitedly.
"So, how soon do you think you can unseal your power?" He asked, leaning forward.
"Hm? Why would I do that?" Gwyn asked, tilting her head in confusion.
"Why? S-so that you can help defeat the Demon Lord of course."
"Ooohh... I'm not doing that." She said bluntly.
