"Bought thirty acres of land in the country so you can retire away from the youth ruining everything?" Fate asked sarcastically.
He grew madder with every sentence this Adept spoke, but had tried to maintain proper decorum and respect for his senior until now.
The astronomical sum of money that Benedict raked in every year was enough to shock Fate straight for a time, but now that it slipped, he found he didn't care.
Instead of matching Fate's anger, Benedict burst into a hearty laugh that left him gasping and bent over by the time it passed.
He straightened and wiped a glowing tear from his eye. "You aren't afraid to stand in front of your betters. Good, I don't need my grandkids being a bunch of spineless cowards that can't look others in the eye.
"No, I didn't buy land out in the country, though that is an appealing idea for my retirement," he admitted, making a mental note of it. "The smoke and smog in Fonford obscures everything, I have to go hundreds of miles out to get away from it.
"These old bones of mine need more than just the artificial sun above us. It's close to the real thing, but my Facet can tell the difference."
Benedict stretched his hands to the sky, bending over at the middle to touch his toes with a slight grimace. His flexibility, like his abundant energy, made Fate doubt once more if he was truly so close to death.
Facets did slow aging to 25% of the normal speed at the Adept Stage, but Fate had always thought that meant staying as an old man for four times as long before finally kicking the bucket.
Now that he was thinking about it, Old Man Travis was just as exuberant and full of life, and Fate was certain he was older than Benedict.
Fate just chalked it up to another quirk of Facets that he didn't yet understand, or a Spell or Imprint he was unaware of. It wasn't relevant to the him of the present, anyway.
"Father, we were talking about our engagement," Samantha reminded gently. Her father often trailed off like this, not due to his age, but just because of who he was.
Every idea he was presented with or came up with was something he wrapped his entire mind around, attempting to break it apart piece by piece to learn the flaws, risks, and benefits of such an action.
It was a large part of why he was such a good businessman, that and his willingness to take risks when deemed necessary.
But this resulted in her father often trailing off during conversations, requiring a nudge to get back on track.
"Ah, right, right," nodded Benedict, who stopped stretching. "As I was saying, I didn't buy a house out in the country. No, I used the Lights I worked for to benefit my daughter.
"After the shock of my daughter announcing her engagement, I started digging into your background. Anyone that managed to earn such a thing from my daughter wasn't one to brush off lightly, not when her happiness might be at stake.
"So I denied her first request to cancel it, and started traveling while my daughter was busy at the Academy.
"The villagers in Brergan were easy enough to persuade, though I used a lie-detecting Imprint to validate everything they said.
"I was surprised how much they hated you, until I concluded from their testimonies that it has something to do with those eyes of yours. I had almost dismissed you as a marriage candidate out of hand when I heard about the mark on your back, and how you earned it."
His eyes narrowed, flashing brightly for a brief instant before returning to their previous light level. "As a man that had started with nothing but my parents' debt-ridden estate and a few hundred Lights to my name, stealing is something I normally cannot tolerate.
"But then a nice stall owner named Barry told me why you did it," he said, cracking a smile. "He said he overheard your little spat with my daughter. Said that you did it because you didn't want to impose on my little girl, even for a few Lights.
"Independence is hard work, son," advised the Adept. "Especially when you're working for fuck-all wages and surrounded by petty folk who charge you extra just for what you look like.
"But you didn't give that up, even when faced with thirty-six lashes and a criminal brand to follow you for the rest of your life.
"You're damn lucky the Empress deemed it fit to change that law a few hundred years ago. Before then, they would've branded your cheek and everyone would be able to tell your past at a glance. Now you can just hide it under your shirt and live life normally.
"Hard-working, determined, willing to stand up for yourself and others; the more I listened, the more intrigued I was. I started to think that my daughter was right to pick you after all, but I wasn't convinced. I dug deeper.
"Your professors were more reserved in expressing themselves than the Brergan villagers, and once I told them it was for a job you applied for, they were far more honest as well.
"I even tracked down that Black Dragon assassin you had fought last week and asked him about you. It's expensive hiring one of those shifty bastards, but what I learned was well worth the coin."
Another round of laughter bubbled out from the noble, more unbridled than the last one. He had to lean on his daughter for support as he calmed down, shaking his head in wonder.
"I don't know what the hell gave you the balls to stand up to a trained assassin at the Master Stage, boy, but doing such a thing for your friend is by far the best thing I've heard about you.
"And you did it not once, but twice! I always suspected that Helga woman to be a lunatic, but I didn't know she'd do such a thing to her own child. And you still stood up to the crazy bitch!"
Another wave of raucous laughter shook the man, Samantha patting his back as the laughs turned to wheezes and then coughs. All the while, she stared at Fate with a mixture of wonder and recognition.