The young master hit his head against an anvil!
I rapidly treat the wound and carry him to his room.
Thankfully he hadn't started working yet, and the anvil was still cold, or it would have been more much troublesome to heal him.
I notice that guy open the door to young master’s room, I immediately throw a knife at him, but he catches it.
"Haha! so how is he?" I ignore him and continue treating the young master, and he starts walking towards him "Hmm, it was nothing serious... that's good."
"You're not going to ask what happened to him?"
"What for? That boy is so clumsy he could trip on his own shadow." I cannot accept anyone to insult the young master, but I simply cannot retort to that today.
"I didn't die?" The young master wakes up.
"Hahaha! You are one lucky bastard! I found you on the workshop before you bleed out too much!" Hmph, I know I need to keep my cover, but I don't like how readily you took the credit.
Hmph, it doesn't matter, the only important thing is that he is unharmed.
"Master?"
"Geez Octo, I was very worried, you know!?"
"Haha! Try to rest, will ya? I have other stuff to do" But then the young master said the words I least expected to come out of his mouth
"I want to leave and explore the world!"
"W-what are you saying?... There's monsters and bandits outside the clan's walls!" You fool! you don't even have a single pattern and you want to go outside!? Even I can only do so much with 5 patterns.
"Hahahaha! Did that hit leave you retarded? it's just as the lass says." I won't forgive him for insulting the young master like that, I glare at him for a moment, and then focus on the young master again.
The young master makes a determined expression "I'm completely serious." Ahhh, the young master serious face, I haven't seen him do that since we were kids... it seems I'll have to work extra hard from now on.
"Hmph, even if you are, with that injury you're not going anywhere." The old bastard then closed his eyes and started thinking for a moment. "Rest for a week and give this some serious thought, these kind of things shouldn't be done in a whim."
He's fine already! You already know that, and you already know he won't back down! I know he's just doing this to mess with me, I even involuntarily lament "But-!"
"Let's leave the poor guy to rest." He said with a commanding tone, hmph, pompous bastard.
"Fine."
We both leave the room; I know he has something to tell me.
"Very good, lass! thanks for saving the life of my clumsy grandson!" He says, I know he's being genuine, he does seem to care the young master, but I know he has nothing good for him in store.
"Hmph, you can pay me with your life if you think so."
"Haha! keep dreaming lass, I was being serious when I said I was busy. I trust you already know what to do?"
"Hmph, naturally" My duty since my birth has always been the same, if my foolish young master wants to go into the world, then bring it on!"
But I have to question that old bastard, he doesn't do anything without a reason, and he must have some plans for him, so I don't think he would let him go just like that.
Hmph, since I have no way of knowing what he's thinking, I'll just stay more alert than usual.
Having said that, I activate my <shadow walking> and go to guard the young master.
* * *
been 2 days since the young master injured himself, and now he's cleaning the barn and talking to that girl.
What kind of young master goes out of his way to clean the barn!
When I confronted that guy about this he said, "it builds character" The nerve!
And that girl, hmm, I don't know how I feel about her. at first I worked hard so that her and young master's other friend ended up together, but if the young master is to become the new master of the clan, he would need a few wives doesn't he?
Of course, I wouldn’t mind if he only marries me!
Just like everything else, this should have depended on the young master disposition.
I don't feel like I did anything wrong, but I did do something unnecessary.
While I'm focusing on the young master one of the cows starts getting a little affectionate with the young master.
Impudent thing!
Hmm, but it's a little strange, why am I feeling bored all of a sudden? I can think of one thing, could it be that I made some sort of link with the cow?
I hate doing this, but I'll have to depend on that guy to control this link, I don't want to have an animal influencing me.
* * *
"Haha! so how did you feel about the cow?" this bastard...
"Consider it a gift from me to you" I immediately throw a knife at him
"How did you do it?" he sneers "Are you stupid? You were born here, of course I would have something like your umbilical cord"
Kuh! Disgusting old man!
"Hahaha! don't glare me like that, here's all you need to know about your link." He throws me a book, and I catch it.
"What are you playing at?" I keep glaring at him.
"Hmm, I don't know what you're talking about" however his smug smile suggest otherwise "I was quite happy to leave him in the nest to be safe, but if Octavius decided on his own to leave then I can only indulge him."
"Hmph, I don't believe you." "Haha! it's all the same to me, it's not like you're going to do anything different."
"Look, that boy has never had any place in any of my plans, unlike his mother, his talent is only a tier above average, but it's nothing extraordinary. This is something you should already know."
It's pointless to continue talking to him, so I leave.
* * *
The day after that I kept guarding the young master, however it's a peaceful day, so I decide to approach him
I keep trying take call him, but he seems too absorbed in his mind to notice me, geez -
"Boo!" Ahhh!! I fall on my butt...
“Fool. That kind of thing is not going to work thrice on me” I have shown something shameful to the young master, and now he's looking down on me...
He helps me stand up and we make some small talk, however that stops very quickly, and he goes back into his mind.
I, of course, don't interrupt him, he must be seriously thinking about he's journey.
I look into the young master's face. My duty as his shadow had been decided since before I was born.
Even when I was in my mother’s womb, I had already started absorbing ether, and I heard that the day I was born the flowers of paprika bloomed.
Two months after that, the young master had been born, but without much fanfare from the heavens.
And of course, even as a baby, that guy had already spared no expense in making me take part in various rituals to improve my cultivation.
I condensed my first pattern when I was 1 year old, my second pattern when I was 3, and my third one at 5.
When I turned 5 my duty as the shadow of the young master started, and I did it without any passion, it was just another task for someone who only knew to follow orders.
However, on an 8 of august I did something extremely shameful, and fell sleep in the middle of my duty, and the young master happened to find me... and he put a blanket over me and slept at my side...
At that moment I felt warm, warm in a way I had never felt before.
And at that moment I decided I the meaning of my life was to protect him, but on my own terms.
I introduced myself to the young master, and I started following him in the open.
Of course, I faced a very severe punishment at the time, but what I did was not something that could be walked back, and a new status quo was formed.
"Hehe, thanks Sexta!" The young master suddenly said and started walking towards somewhere.
Yes, it's for these moments that I do what I do.
* * *
A week has passed since the young master injured himself, we're now at the office of that guy, of course, since it should be a private conversation between the young master and him, I used my <shadow walking> so that the young master wouldn't notice me.
But this scene is completely appalling! Why are you acting all cool while giving him those garbage artifacts!
<Ice to see you>?! the <Milk engine>???! these artifacts are completely useless! Young master, he's making a fool out of you!
I know he can feel my glare, but the fact that he's smiling even more is infuriating! He's just picking a fight with me at this point!
The spell <Steam cannon> is the only decent thing he's given him, and even that spell is not that great, it has an acceptable amount of power, especially for a ranged attack, but it’s too loud, whenever you use it you'll just end up alerting everyone about your location.
After the young master leaves, I come out of the shadows "What the hell was that?"
"Haha! I was just giving him some gifts!"
"You know what I'm talking about."
"Lass, your lack of experience is showing. In this world there is no greater sin than being rich beyond your means! I gave him the best things I could give him."
"Hmph!"
The bastard makes a complacent smile "It's true! with those artifacts, as long as he's not outright incompetent, he won't be able to die of starvation or dehydration!"
"Tch!" I leave, I have to go ''say goodbye'' to the young master.
* * *
I'm on a rooftop watching over the young master and I'm seeing him gathering courage to talk to a tavernkeeper, how cute! He's never been a very talkative person, I know it's a difficult thing for him, so it's nice seeing him seriously trying
The young master has always been a very eccentric individual, even as a child he never talked much, and was always reading something instead, he only managed to become friends with other two kids by pure coincidence.
And when he started to work on the forge, he worked on making nails... and only nails...
He only made nails for a few years, it was a very long and difficult process to convince him to work on anything else...
I realized somewhere in that time that the young master was also very foolish, but it doesn't matter, maybe if he was less foolish he would become tainted by the world, and be just like anyone else... When I think about it like that, I'm very happy to have such a foolish young master.
But just as I'm remembering some good times, I feel a very strong pressure!
A knife is flying in my direction! But I manage to dodge it.
"Damn, that was my best shot at a surprise attack..." I see someone saying lazily, a very tall man, he's hunched, he has black hair that covers most of his face, and a similarly large beard falling from his chin, he's wearing a black suit.
"I will not let you harm the young master!" Both of us are suppressing our auras, ordinary people, and more importantly, the young master, won't realize what's happening right now... but I'm sure that guy knows exactly what's going on.
I immediately lunge towards him and attack him with my knife.
But at that moment, another surprise attack!
A short and fat man comes from a shadow and hits me in the torso with a massive hammer! A few of my ribs break and I spit out some blood.
"Hey, don't kill the girl." the tall man says in a carefree way, while walking towards the knife he threw at me.
"I know I know, but I didn't expect our target to have 5 patterns! 5!"
"Uhuh, we have completed our mission either way." after saying that, he throws the same knife at me again, and this time, I'm in no condition to dodge.
"Kuh!" I feel a puncturing pain in my gut... and I suddenly find myself in a dark place I don't recognize...
I hear the voice of the tall man, but it sounds far away and distorted
"The <House of Mariana> has recovered what it lost"
"Young master!" I lose my consciousness shortly after that...
* * *
"And just like that, I don't have any loose ends left" Master is in his office, looking at a mirror. "Haha! Sexta, your inexperience showed all the way. I never had any plans for my boy, but you were the perfect bait to keep him safe."
"I have to prepare for the ritual soon, I've put it off long enough."
Master takes something from his desk, it's a picture of a woman holding a baby, it's Octavius, and looks at it "I've done everything I could to keep you safe, but now the rest depends on you..."
"I expect some good stories from you, journeymen always bring some good ones when they return!"
