A murder of crows on a moonlit sky reflected off the held wine glass. Blake sat back, his legs crossed as he sipped his glass of grape juice. On the balcony overhanging the front garden, were the silhouettes of two individuals.
"Sorry for forgetting our meeting"
He placed his beverage down onto the stylized glass table, continuing before the person he was talking to could respond.
"Though I would seem more apologetic if we were both sitting down"
Lizabelle wanted to give a perfunctory apology before she saw her young master grinning and realized it was a joke. She promptly pulled back the white chair he was kicking outwards before gracefully sitting, minding her attire.
"Sorry Liz, I hope this time it was a bit more sincere"
He looked at her charming blue eyes. She bore a simple looped hair bun tied from her silky black hair. Blake could only see it as she slanted her head to the side while he was speaking.
"We haven't spoken much since my 16th birthday. And it's my fault since I've been bogged down by studies"
Lizabelle seemed to have something to say but, she held it in. Her face still turned, looking out into the town that was the center of the Quills fiefdom and the moon that shone brightly above.
"But, I can give you some good news, I've memorized the entire history of the Pareese Kingdom, well at least the amount stored in our library. That includes the political structure, the power struggles, and the etiquette I'm supposed to learn for our trip"
The maid froze for a few long seconds. Her arms shook and the shock made her miss whatever words were said after 'Kingdom'.
"But you've- apologies, Young master has been sleeping whenever this servant went looking for the young master. How can young master have enough time to finish reading all those books and even fully remember them?!"
She finally blurted out the words that were held in. Her agitation was enough to cause her to lift off of her seat.
"*Cough**Cough* Sit down first, sit down first Liz"
Blake gesticulated while pouring her a glass of grape juice. His face gave off a slight blush, but inwardly he felt amused. He took another sip of juice, to which Lizabelle followed along to hide her similar embarrassment.
After a short silence elapsed.
"There are countless things that we assume are impossible... in this world. But, we only assume things because we don't know enough about them. Though, my friend had always said that it was pointless to get caught up in the impossible. I wouldn't have let you take away my books each morning if I hadn't finished reading them"
His words caused waves to stir in her heart. Questions emerged about the young master, but what sparked a larger reaction was the doubt she had towards herself. 'Because we don't know enough about them' Did she not know enough about him? Was the young master in front of her, not the young boy she had grown up with for 16 years? All of a sudden, she felt lost as she stared back into his deep brown eyes.
"Young master has friends?"
Blake chuckled at the sudden question that could be understood as an insult. He read her eyes as he replied.
"Case in point"
"Case and point?"
"Ah, don't mind what I said, as usual. Aren't I still your mysterious young master? Nothing's changed, has it not? We witness things that we don't understand every day, just like today, something like quintessence would be beyond my knowledge merely this morning"
Lizabelle gently exhaled a deep breath as she listened. She had let herself go twice in one sitting and she needed to calm down. Her young master was still sitting in front of her, not anywhere else and nothing had really changed, just her perception. Though perhaps that change was not minuscule...
Her young master knowing that he had shaken up her heart, sat patiently and surveyed Jackstown, his father's responsibility. Not knowing that he had severely underestimated just how much of a stir he had caused.
Jackstown was a mining village that had recently forayed into farming under his father's rule. The troops under their household numbered 200, 5 percent of their population of 4000. It was a common percentage, at least among the towns a little closer towards the heart of the kingdom.
Blake's favorite place in the manor had always been this balcony. The view reminded him of some things that couldn't be forgotten, and he could reminisce as he oversaw the town below. A guard station was positioned directly outside the hedge that acted as the walls of the manor and was small enough that it wouldn't block his vision. It also acted as a small-scale barracks/armory as well as a dungeon.
A main path in the town ran directly to the manor, and the wanderings of the townsmen were part of the enjoyment the young master received when he sat here at daytime. Currently, the grace of night was only kept company by the same tavern-goers seen every evening.
As the man who truly 'oversaw' Jackstown, Count Quills spent most of his day in the main office, a room not too far from the porch. Naturally, this was not all that he dealt with as a vassal to the Kingdom. Trade and management aside, Inter-fief diplomacy played a large part in the ruling of various lords, and following the power struggles in the capital were integral to a lord's survival.
For that reason, Blake believed that the introduction held by his father today had more purpose than the count had led on. He remembered the question that he had left until after the demonstration to discuss in private.
'Dad, What was the purpose of teaching us this now? Is it related to my trip?'
He had some skepticism, especially since he was still a boy without quintessence. As someone who spoke out his qualms to the point where his family's entire lifestyle had changed, Blake didn't feel the need to hold back.
'You can find out when you get there. As for what the purpose was, think of it preparations for when you receive your quintessence. After all, a tiger cub still learns to hunt without its adult teeth"
Whatever meaning his father had, it still wouldn't come into effect until a month after. Though what he gathered was that learning about abilities was a must, mastering his ability quickly also seemed to be a priority.
With that thought, he asked Lizabelle a question, the main intention he had for this very meeting.
"Liz, can you tell me what quintessence you have?"