I went to the kitchen to prepare the plates and bring out food for everyone. My knife slipped through the flash char and through the soft flesh. I quickly plated the first portion. The door swung open behind me with the muffled friction of wood against the frame.

  “Please allow us to take care of the food, just instruct us on the desired order of the dishes.” Lyra’s butler spoke as he and Cassia’s maid came in.

  “Hm…” I was ready to refuse, yet something made it hard to voice it. ‘It’s quiet…’ despite the relatively many people, despite three kids being here, it was completely quiet. No one talked. I came here to the kitchen, leaving the people that came for me alone.

  “Ha…” I let the knife go, placing it on the counter next to the chopping board with the meat on. “Very well, thank you for your help.” I turned around and stepped off the stool I was using to reach the countertop. “There aren’t many dishes, pickles, porridge and roast are the main dish, then the biscuits are the follow-up course with some tea.”

  I opened a cabinet. “These are the cups for the tea and here’s the teapot.” I pointed up to a suspended cabinet. “There’s the tea mix. Use it as is. Last but not least the cake is supposed to be brought out uncut and portioned with everyone seeing it, it’s kind of the highlight and I worked hard on making it. Is there anything else you’d like to know?”

  “No, that is enough, go enjoy your birthday, master Cato.” The butler bowed slightly, much to my surprise.

  I stepped through the door, welcomed by an awkward murmur. Lyra is whispering with Magnar while Cassia is sitting in her chair, seemingly slowly slipping off it, in a relaxed, disappointed state, her eyes tracing he folding lines in boredom. Hargrave is and Vex were absent, probably in the study, while the guard stood with his hawk like gaze sweeping the room.

  I took my seat, between Cassia and Magnar. Cassia seeing me straightened herself and corrected her slumped posture. Lyra put a bit of distance between Magnar and herself, breaking their little bubble.

  “I have never seen tableware quite as… unconventional.” Lyra broke the silence.

  “I’m aware they may not be the refined porcelain you are used to, but they are my work and I’m quite proud of them.” I answered calmly.

  “You made these?” Her eyes widened slightly.

  “Yes, along with Magnar.”

  Her slight contempt was gone, replaced by appreciation. She placed her fingers contemplatively on the ceramic plate.

  “Most of the things here were done by Magnar and I, well, aside from the furniture, that I did alone since you took him.”

  Our conversation was cut short as the food was brought to the table. Magnar received a copious cut, just as he should have. The three of them started eating. Lyra held the fork and knife in a delicate manner. Her forearms hovered above the table, never coming to rest on it.

  She quickly cut a bite sized piece of the meat and ate. For a second, she stilled, snapped into a rigid vertical. Similarly, Cassia looked at the fork she had just used to place food in her mouth. The only unbothered one was Magnar, who had a chance to try my cooking before.

  “Ahem.” Lyra cleared her throat to mask her breach of composure. “I must say that this is quite exquisite, I would like to know who the cook is, not for trouble, but to invite him to cook for our family.” Magnar started coughing furiously as soon as she finished speaking, each of his coughs shaking the floor and table, sounding like cannon shots.

  “Did you make this by yourself?” Cassia ignored Lyra and asked me directly as soon as Magnar’s fit stopped.

  “Yes, yet I have to say that I still think I didn’t do as good of a job as I could have.” I move my eyes from Cassia to Lyra. “I’m afraid I must refuse your invitation. I do not wish to get involved in the matters concerning politics. Your household is a hub of tensions that I’d rather keep away from.”

  Out of the rest, the guard didn’t receive a plate, nor did the butler and maid take any food. While I understood why Rorick wouldn’t eat, I was not as comfortable being watched so intently by the two silent, standing observers that the two servants were.

  “You may also eat, take as much as you need.” I saw the butler try to say something as for the first time he looked straight at me and continued. “This isn't a gesture of charity; I simply find your continued service a redundant use of labor. Ask your young lady if you have doubts.”

  “Thaddeus, please do not feel obliged to keep formalities, this is not that kind of setting and he himself offered.”

  “Very well then.”

  Thaddeus and the maid retreated to the kitchen. An awkward stillness settled over the hand-dyed tablecloth as stray steam twirled above the roast and porridge. After a moment I spoke up.

  “Actually, how much did you tell Lyra about me, she seems… to lack a lot of context…”

  “Not that much, I didn’t try to hide anything in particular, but you didn’t seem keen on getting involved with nobility…” His eyes darted from me to Cassia, then returned to me. “It seems I thought too much.”

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  “Not at all, but a lot of awkward questions could have been avoided if you informed her.”

  He nodded. “I did not think this sort of things would come up…”

  “So, is there a lot more I should know?” Lyra intervened.

  I exchanged a look with Magnar, then looked up. “No, not quite, nothing relevant.”

  “We didn’t do our usual training yesterday” Cassia intervened.

  “Tomorrow is the group battle; we can catch up on it the day after.” I assured her.

  “Could we join?” Lyra made a request that my thoughts stall for a moment. I’ve been trying to avoid fighting with Magnar for quite a while. By now my injuries were healed, not gone, but I could go on without soothing with aether.

  “I mean…”

  “Is there a problem?” She pressed her request.

  “There wouldn’t be any problem. It’s just Magnar’s size make it hard to fight him right now… I’m kind of a pipsqueak right now. He backs up and I might be squished.”

  “Magni wouldn’t do such a mistake, besides aether reinforcement exists, unless you’re a mage, in which case you wouldn’t need to worry about him backing on you.” She pressed with flawless logic. I could only pass this hot potato.

  “Cassia has to agree too, what do you say?” I looked at Cassia hoping she would have a better way to handle a rejection, yet her eyes flashed with determination and focus as she betrayed my expectations.

  “I think it’s a great idea. Me with Cato against you and Magnar.” My jaw slackened.

  ‘What do you mean me and you? Magnar can squash you and her ice balls injured this mammoth of a guy! Do you mean me protecting you against them?’ I didn’t even know how to protest. By the time I recovered enough to try and object Lyra spoke up again.

  “Then it’s settled!” I looked at Magnar for help. He caught my gaze and raised his hands in defeat.

  ‘What is this? You’re so big yet Lyra commands you? Have you no manliness? You’re too young… Or rather don’t women always win arguments? I can’t even blame him; I’m just as lost as he is, and neither of these two are my girlfriends. Heck I’m older than both even if they added their ages…’

  I continued eating silently my shoulders slumping, resigned to their conclusion. After everyone finished, the biscuits were brought out along with the tea.

  Cassia was the first to pick one. She grabbed it by its ends and snapped it. A crisp crack sounded out, while the two pieces revealed the jagged crystalline structure inside broken by the oat flakes. She ate it composedly while I waited for a reaction. Magnar and Lyra followed suit.

  “These are amazing!” Magnar looked at the half of the cookie still in his hand as if he just uncovered God. His eyes were big with a fervor so intense I thought the cookie would start burning. “It’s sweeter than anything I ever had!”

  I smiled contently and took a sip of my tea. Neither Cassia nor Lyra had reactions as drastic but they both seemed to have liked my creations quite a lot.

  “They just crumble in your mouth and melt coating the tongue with that wheat flavor, the fruits add some sourness to contrast the sweet and these things, I think…” Lyra pointed at an oat flake. “Give it a lot of chewiness…”

  Cassia just reached for a second one. Yet I felt the need to remind her.

  “They are supposed to be eaten with the tea.”

  “The tea’s sweet too, not as sweet…” Lyra continued the analysis. “It adds more complexity to the flavor. It’s floral notes however get swallowed up by the sweetness of the cookies.”

  “For now, once the tongue grows more used to the sweet flavor, the rest starts to emerge too. But save yourselves for the final too.” I tempered them, eyeing Cassia who just swallowed and stuck her tongue out at me.

  I shook my head slightly, a small smile played on my lips at her antics. We descended into silence. Not an awkward lack of communication this time, but a pleased, content silence in which everyone enjoyed what they liked.

  As my thoughts moved on to the cake, I remembered my parents. I had decorated my cake with the tower. I felt more at home here, where I didn’t have to pretend at all than I ever had back home. I left in a rush, half avoiding my parents.

  Perhaps, now that I had a place to call home, a baseline safety, it was time to set things straight with them. I no longer had to worry about starving, I was winning good money with my smithing, by the time the academy ended I could buy a house on the capital’s outskirts or within the city walls as my heart desired.

  I frowned. It was cowardly that I waited for so long. ‘I should’ve talked to them faster… I didn’t try to hide it in particular, they sure know I’m not normal, but…’. My mood slowly worsened again. I shook my head, trying to cast out the ideas again, at least for a short while.

  But I couldn’t do it anymore. I had to face the truth. I no longer had any reason to hide, the academy wasn’t teaching me anything so important that I couldn’t make a trip back, besides, the journey would serve as the perfect training.

  The more I thought the more I felt the idea of the trip was good. Even if I didn’t tell them the truth, I could at least set things right, have a new goodbye. Yet a part of me came with the low effort protest that there was no reason to risk myself like that.

  ‘When in doubt, ask around!’ I clenched my teeth and spoke out loud.

  “I was thinking about making a trip back home.”

  “Hm?” Magnar looked at me questioningly. He knew the most about my reasons, yet this was a bit sudden.

  Lyra’s teacup stopped a few centimeters from her lips at the unexpected statement while Cassia’s head snapped to me. Her hand was still extended to the cookie plate.

  “The academy doesn’t teach me anything important for now, I am going to return in about two weeks at most anyway. I was thinking of taking the opportunity to settle some things with my parents and also gain some experience in fighting beasts.”

  “You want to go alone?” Lyra asked shocked.

  “No way, I’d be going with him.” Magnar firmly stated.

  “No, you wouldn’t. I graduated in advance several of my classes, you just got through artifacts and maintenance because of me.”

  “You what!?” Lyra exclaimed, her jaw hanging loose.

  “You need these classes more than I do, besides don’t forget about her.” I pointed at Lyra.

  “It’s too dangerous to go alone! Didn’t you get attacked by bandits on the way here?” He riposted.

  “I was the main reason we got out of there also, I’m stronger than you! I’m a core formation, remember? And my injuries healed!”

  “You’re what?” Lyra came in as punctuation to my statement again in her shock. Her guard’s eyes also lit up in understanding, finally realizing why I was able to drive his sword back as easily.

  Cassia face palmed as soon as I finished speaking. She quickly wiped her lips of any stray crumbs and intervened.

  “Actually, if it’s training you want, you don’t have to leave the academy.” She quickly tried to divert attention. Yet the damage was done.

  “What do you mean?” I focused my attention on her.

  “I overheard it from my father… And none of you tell anything about this to anyone else!” Her eyes swept over us with a frown that would make lions back away. We all nodded, including Rorick.

  “I heard that there would be a competition towards the end of this year. A competition between students from all the nations with divisions by years. Students will as such be selected and trained to participate. I heard it may be a method to peacefully settle the dispute between the nations, but I don’t know the details.”

  Cassia looked me dead in the eyes. “Cato, you’ll definitely be selected and receive extra training.”