Along the massive pool of the fortress, Prisma and the rest had arrived from the main floor and saw that their family members were busy just enjoying the day and the weather that was present. At least the children were, the adults however, the ones who were brothers and sisters of the heads of the families were gathered together in one of the bodegas which was in the corner of the pce, sitting around or standing behind the people seated as they were called to discuss the arrival of their Grandmother Leini.
"Soo, anyone got things to say about the cousins coming in tomorrow?" Prisma asked as she looked at all of them, there were 20 of them in total
"What do you mean by that cousin?" A young 28-year-old human man by the name of Arturios Aime asked as he looked at her, his bck eyes holding a mix of mischief and curiosity within them
"You know what I mean, I believe Joachim and I expined that we need all of you to take stock of our cousins and note down who could possibly be...mischievous let's say, when the event arrives" She answered as she gazed at all of them
"Right...that, I believe we all answered that question when we handed you those files st month cousin" Arturios stated as he looked at the rest of his siblings and cousins who nodded in agreement
"I know that. I am asking if there are any pressing updates on the matter. The mischievous kids and adults we can handle, but need I remind you that these people probably have not met Grandmother in their lives? I don't want to be there when one of them believes she looks like a damn maid and starts ordering her around"
"Ah...I see...fair" The young man replied with a nod as he rested on the wall of the pagoda
"Yeah, so, any new updates?" The Tower Master asked
"Hmmm, no none so far"
"Same here"
"Me too" A chorus of answers came from Prisma's cousins and she nodded along in content as this was what she had wanted to hear. Everything needed to be perfect and come hell or high water she was going to get everything perfect tonight. Not just for herself, nor the entire family which were bonuses, she wanted to get it perfect for the woman who had been there for it all across all of the main families.
"Right, with all of that settled. Let's enjoy some time here, Grandmother will be coming down soon, and with her, there's going to be a little surprise for everyone" A beautiful arachnia woman by the name of Mathilda who was the head of the Anir branch of the family chimed in as she pced her hands on the shoulders of her family
{!}
At the same time, several carts were wheeled onto the area, den with food for the entire family currently present. The carts were filled with meats, rice, vegetables and even some sweets in the form of cinnamon rolls, chocote cupcakes and other delectable sweets. Each cart also had an assortment of ptes and utensils at the bottom which the kids and adults moved to get as they saw the three head maids and a newer maid pce down the food along a rge table that Mintess snapped into existence.
Once the younger ones had dried themselves off, changed into a pair of shorts or a shirt over their swimwear, and were seated did they finally began eating the vast amount of varied food for them to enjoy. But while the sounds of people enjoying a great meal were in the air, Joachim and Ariani pulled the trio of head maids aside while they watched this new maid who looked to be a woman barely in her 20s move around the table with a pitcher of iced tea that she used to pour more drink into gsses that were raised to her by the kids.
"Soo, who is that by the way?" Joachim asked as he looked at the trio of elves
"She is one of the new hires" Teressa answered him with a short nod
"I see and I get that but I don't recall us asking for you to hire anyone new" Ariani stated as she looked at them as well, slightly confused
"Oh, but Sir Joachim did, we believed you knew Our Lady" Sapphim chimed in to answer, leaving the matriarch of the Augustus Family even more confused
"You did?" She asked as she turned to her beloved husband
"Yeah, I did. I also forgot to tell you. Sorry my darling" Joachim answered as he looked at her and had a regretful expression on his face
"Well, no use crying about it now. Next time, inform me ok?"
"Of course" The two of them then shared a brief kiss before getting back to it
"So, back to the topic. What's her name?" The Duke asked as he gestured to the new maid
"Her name is Lucy McGryer. She passed dead st in all of the trials needed to become a worker here, from magic to cooking and even fighting. Unremarkable by our standards but unlike the rest of the trainees this time around, she had the very fascinating drive to finish no matter what. It's what got us to allow her a full week trial period to see if she can do even better with that spirit of hers" Sapphim stated as she conjured up a folder containing all of the details and handed it over to the couple
"Well, if she was able to pass the trials albeit at the bottom of everything, she deserves that much" Joachim commented with a nod
"True, we can grant her that much" Ariani remarked as she looked at the magi-crystal photo of her that had been taken
They saw the face of a young girl awkwardly smiling as if she had never seen such a thing before. She was beautiful and some could say cute even, with her curly and short bck hair, her cheeks which had some freckles on them and even her chestnut brown eyes were sights to behold. But what was interesting for the couple was the fact that Lucy was listed as a 'Mind Imperceptive' as in, a person who has a strong resistance to mind-reading magic, only toppled by the strongest of magics or of someone with godlike abilities.
"Huh...I guess this was also a reason you approved her trial no?" The Duchess asked as she looked at the trio who nodded
"That was also a good portion of our judgment yes. If we can have someone like that on our staff, she will be a boon when it comes to defensive measures" Mintess answered
"Alright then. Carry on, keep an eye on her and see if she improves, if not and she is let go, then that is fine as well since we are already strong enough" The Duke added as he gnced over at Lucy who was pouring some iced tea for a little girl
"It will be done Sir, you can count on that" The trio responded at the same time with a small curt bow
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While the five of them were chatting away and observing, Lucy, or rather Leini in disguise, was busy moving around the table helping refill the gsses of the little kids who raised them up to signal to her what they wanted.
"Can I have a refill please?" A young dragonkin boy named Darius asked as he raised his gss to her while keeping his gaze on her
"Of course little one, let me just- there, all filled" Lucy replied with a smile
"Thank you!" The young d replied before he went back to eating
She looked around and saw three adults raising their gsses to her and she made her way there, as she did so, one of the teens on the table accidentally, pushed his chair back which would have struck the young maid were it not for her able to sense it before it happened and took a step back, saving herself and the young teenage boy from embarrassment.
"Oh! I am so sorry" The young d by the name of Turner said as he bowed his head and then began moving away to the nearby washroom to wash his hands
"Oh no need, I am sorry young master" Lucy replied while bowing her head slightly and then moving over to the three adults who were still waiting for her to pour them iced tea
Once she reached the trio of adults, she saw that it was an arachnia wearing a fine emerald-colored silk dress that complimented her white, a ram beastkin wearing a gorgeous suit of red and gold, and a siren who had a very skimpy set of swimwear that highlighted her bountiful assets, all of whom were in their 30s. They all had curious gazes in their eyes as they watched the young maid refill their gsses with iced tea and once she was done, the trio kept their gazes on her, making the young maid suspect that they had something to say.
"New hire?" The arachnia asked, a dy by the name of Agatha Alistra, as she looked at the young maid
"Oh! Uh, yes, My Lady" The young maid replied shyly as she bowed her head slightly, not daring to show her face to the group
"Hahaha! No need for pleasantries little one! You don't need to be intimidated by us" The siren by the name of Scil Arras stated with a hearty ugh as she looked up at the young maid
"That is true, for while we may seem like nobles, most of us here are commoners just like yourself, but keep that between us ok?" The ram beastkin by the name of Gustav Apparn chimed in as he tapped his nose and gave the young maid a wink
"I understand then, if you will excuse me your graces" Lucy replied as she bowed her head once more and began walking away
As Lucy went back to one of the carts to switch out the ice-cold ice tea filled pitcher she was using, the trio of head maids made their way to the carts next to hers and despite the rest of the family being present, they had set up a quick telepathic link between all four of them, doing their best to mask their connection to the young maid by making it as if it was just between the three of them instead.
[Master, the former heads of the families are going to be arriving soon. Sapphim will assign you to go do the work outside so please follow along] Mintess told her
{Very well} Leini replied
Sapphim chimed in
"You. With me now." Sapphim ordered as she began walking away, as she did so, Lucy followed behind her without question, leaving the rest of the family.
As they exited the pool area and entered one of the many hallways of the fortress, which had several servants cleaning the furniture, the duo saw 'Leini' and Martha come down the stairs from their room and Sapphim discreetly nodded at the duo before gncing at Lucy and then tilted her head slightly in their direction to signal to her master who was coming. Lucy looked and when she locked eyes with 'Leini', the young maid stumbled slightly and bumped into the ancestor of the family.
"Oh! I am so sorry Your Grace...I was distracted by your ravishing beauty" Lucy apologized with a small bow as she pushed herself away from the woman she bumped
"No need to apologize deary, just watch your step next time" Leini told the young maid as she embraced her and patted her on the back before walking away with Martha who gnced at the young maid
Meanwhile, the rest of the servants in the room who had seen the scene unfold before them shook their heads in disappointment and embarrassment as one of their own could have done such a seemingly stupid action. Some rolled their eyes as they muttered snder under their breath while others just went back to work after giving off a little ugh at the supposed failure of a maid before them.
"Next time. Look where you are going" Sapphim stated with a hint of disappointment
"Ye..Yes...Apologies Ma'am" Lucy replied as she bowed her head, a hint of tears in the corner of her eyes
{It's fine Sapphi, don't worry about it too much, plus, I got some piece of paper within my pocket that Ash put in so it was all worth it} Leini replied with a cool tone as she kept her gaze towards the carpeted ground
"Mmm, let's go. I hope your greeting skills are better than your ability to not fall over" The elven head maid stated as she then turned around and began walking away
"Of course, lead the way Ma'am" Lucy replied before following behind closely
Meanwhile, rounding another corner that led them straight to the pool area, Martha and Ash were shared a gnce after that encounter.
"Was that?"
"Yes it was. I wouldn't have been able to tell without spotting Sapphim's nod and Mother using the word Ravishing. That was one of the words I would use a lot when I was still alive so it basically confirmed her identity. Plus, these servants are drilled into ensuring that they don't trip or fall, so the fall earlier was on purpose" Ash answered Martha with a small satisfied smile
"So now that we know which one she is, the pn will go a lot smoother now"
"I bet it will Martha, I bet it will" The two women shared another gnce and their smiles grew wider
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Reaching the entrance of the fortress once again, Sapphim stood next to the door with Lucy standing by her side while they watched several carriages roll in, each one grander than the st. The elven head maid knew that this part of the pn hinged on the older adults failing to recognize her master or on the very unlikely off chance they did, understood immediately what was going on and pyed along with the pn.
"Are you ready Master?" Sapphim asked quietly as they saw the first carriage which was colored a grand gold near the entrance
"I am, if we tried pulling this off when Carter was still head of the cousins then he may have figured out the plot the further it went on. Now that he is around 117 however, I think he would like to enjoy some mischief like he did so before" Leini answered her, a small smile on her face as she reminisced about earlier times.
"Is it due to his unique blessing Master?" Sapphim asked
"Oh yeah, the Eyes Of Ragneus blessing is very rare. For one to have a single eye is already scarce but having two? Well, he really did draw a lucky lot" The Old Schor answered her
"What does the blessing do again Master?"
"Simple. Allows a person the ability to not be fooled by illusions be they physical or mental like brainwashing"
"Oh! But you can just produce illusions that can overpower that right?"
"I can, it takes some time but I can. But I don't when it comes to Carter. If I really tried to fool him with illusions, his eyes would be destroyed and he would be rendered blind. I wouldn't want to inflict that on my own family so I usually keep it easy to perceive illusions. Though the one I have on right now is stronger than usual so we shall see what happens"
Once the golden carriage stopped right at the entrance, the door slightly opened to reveal an aging man wearing a sharp and elegant bck suit with golden accents and cuffs stepping out. His wrinkly tan skin still had traces of youth in it and the bulky frame he once had in his prime was still present in a near-to-miss silhouette that was masked by his clothes. His white hair while sharp and well-maintained around his face, was slicked back atop his head. He had a scar running down his right cheek down to the back of his neck and he smiled as he got off the carriage and did a small stretch to get his joints working, rolling his shoulders and even stretching his legs down to warm them up.
"Ahh, Stormholme. It is great to be back" He said in his deep booming voice
"Ah! Miss Saphim! It has been a while!" He bellowed as he looked at and then rushed over to the elven head maid and shook her hand
"Likewise to you too Master Carter" Sapphim replied with a nod and a smile as she looked at him
"And you. I am Carter Alga. A pleasure to meet a young maid such as yourself who is fortunate enough to be working here" The former matriarch of Alga added as he turned to Lucy, bending down slightly to her ear before anyone else got off the other carriages still moving into the entrance
"It is a pleasure to see you after so long Grandmother. Judging by the fact you have disguised yourself as a maid, I am assuming that there is a plot going on. So, how can I and the others help?" Carter whispered before stepping back and csping and shaking her hands, putting on a genuine smile that masked his knowledge of who was behind the illusion
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Deep within the bowels of the undercity in the capital city of Ashen. A bunch of hoodlums, raiders, thieves, disillusioned citizens, crooks, criminals and no-good lowlifes had gathered inside a massive chamber. They were all armed and they were all here due to them getting word about a certain person known as the "Crimson Rider" wishing to recruit at least a small army for what seemed to be a very dangerous but also very rewarding mission.
"Did you hear from the higher ups? The Emperor and the entire Ashen Imperial Family will be in Stormholme Fortress this week for some sort of grand event!" One of the bandits said with glee as he sharpened his bde
"I know right? I don't know the details but from what I heard, this entire thing right now is for us to sack that pce! Think of the fucking bank we are going to make!" Another bandit replied
The entire chamber buzzed with words of excitement and curiosity but quickly silenced once the doors to the chamber opened and all eyes turned to a group of figures wearing nothing but crimson-colored robes and hoods with simirly colored masks that obscured their faces. The group walked from the entrance into the chamber to the other end where there was a small stage they got up on. Once they were there, all eyes and ears were on the group and the tension in the entire pce was palpable as everyone was really excited to hear about the mission.
"I know that many of you are itching to hear what the mission is, but first I wish to y down some facts that I have gathered while all of you have been waiting" The lead man spoke up, their voice slightly distorted via magi-crystal
"First, I know that many if not all of you hate the Ashen Empire. Am I correct?"
"Yeah!" The crowd replied
"This seemingly stable government that seemingly has everything under wraps. It is pitiful, isn't it? A nation that looks so calm on the outside is actually a rotting carcass within"
The crowd's murmurs and cheers increased as they shouted obscenities about the current government and the imperial family, earning ughs and even more cheers from the rest of the chamber.
"The Emperor and his family! The elite! The greedy politicians will all fall to our bde once we strike!"
"YEAH!"
"We are going to shatter this image of stability. This false image of lies that the Ashen Empire is built upon"
"YEAH!"
"You, all of you who have a bone to pick with this seemingly peaceful utopia have all been contacted here by me. The Crimson Rider for one single purpose. To sack Stormholme Fortress and kill every single person inside. Including the Emperor and his family. Do this, and we shall shatter Ashen Hegemony on this continent and bring about a brighter and more prosperous future for all! Now who's with me?!"
"WE ARE"
"Good! So be at the ready my fellow world changers. empire challengers and ruffians! We will strike soon when the event is in full swing! And once we do! We shall all come home as kings and queens!"
A/N: New Chapter. Enjoy! Hehehehe