Before us was the door leading to an office. James unceremoniously opened the door, allowing the light inside to bathe the dark hallway. Inside was an older man who looked old enough to be dad's grandfather.
He had glasses on and hazel mane-like hair flowing down his head. The sunlight from the window acted as a diadem behind his head as he smiled in our direction. Given how elderly he seemed to be, I thought he would have been frail, but he was just as ripped as the receptionist. Seeing us approach, he welcomed us.
"Ah, so this is what all that commotion's about, ay James? Who's the new blood?" The man said.
"Hall Master Douglas, these 3 are the newest applicants". The receptionist named James said to the Hall master as he handed over our applications and exam results.
"Mmm, everything's in order, although young man you could have fooled me since the application says your 10 sols, yet clearly you look like you finished your rite of passage years ago. Anyway, James, what do you think?"
"To be honest Hall Master, I believe all 3 of 'em are ready for a B class task, but only the young'un here fought the C class beast while the little ladies decided not to despite not even breaking a sweat with the 6 D class monsters they both fought". Hearing this, Douglas smiled,
"Hmm, now that just won't do, ladies. Can't let yourselves fall behind in receiving glory for your strength. Not to mention I may look like this, but I can tell a thing or two about people. Thanks James, you can head back down." Douglas said. Nodding his head, James closed the door behind himself as he left.
"Okay let's see… Ivy, no last name; elemental affinity… I see… Can I assume you are the Ivy from the Dark Elf settlement to the northwest? Only one person I can think of bares this name, has an affinity to earth, nature, and light. Last time I checked, she's the matriarch of all mandrakes on the continent."
Douglas said nonchalantly with a relaxed grin as if reading a funny book. I gasped. Ivy is not only known throughout all of Duxley but is the mother of all mandrakes on the continent!! This is big news, and the first time I'm hearing it. When I looked over Ivy giggled like normal and said,
"Guilty as charged, I didn't expect to see a familiar face here. How's clan Elder Palidor? She should be about ready to sleep, correct?"
"It is an honor you remember my clan, and an even greater honor for you to still show concern for my grandmother. Yes, she is doing well. In fact, the last time we spoke which was about 2 nights ago, she asked if you could visit the clan one last time. It must be the ancestors' wisdom which brought you here."
"Well, I'm a married woman now, so wherever my husband goes, so shall I." Ivy said, while holding my hand. I still had tons of questions. The greatest though were about the man before me. Sensing my feelings, Douglas spoke,
"Where are my manners. I apologize for the late introduction, young ancestor. My name is Douglas Parlathan. My elven name is Dalendarra Parlathan, Elder of the light elves who dwell to the northeast under the world tree sapling there."
All elves are able to sense each other's bloodline by reading the radiation elven blood creates. Elders of elven clans are able to sense other elven bloodlines even when a person tries to hide it. In my case, my ancient blood would create enough radiation to kill the average person if I'm not careful. Surprised, an Elder of an elven clan was also a hall master. I decided to show the respect due to his station.
"(In elvish) May blessed life find you, Elder. It is a blessing to see a sister clan prosper in these uncertain days."
I greeted Douglas with the traditional greeting two elven clans use when they first meet. The greeting brought a smile to his face as he nodded in approval, then replied,
"(In elvish) Truly, it is a blessing to see our ancestors still walk among us. May the ancestor's days be long and fruitful." He said, while staring at me and Ivy who acted like newlyweds.
Katya sitting next to us was marveling at the interaction. She, being my twin, knew everything about me and Ivy as well as my race change. As a result, I promised if we find a good elven bloodline compatible with her, I will aid her in performing Race Restoration.
To her credit, she has been practicing the mana circulation technique I initially used before entering the inheritance realm. From a baby who could barely comprehend words, I somehow taught her the meditation method. Or maybe she learned it from watching me. She's always had this extremely intelligent glow in her eyes.
Anyway, because she is currently following the Way of the Arcanist, she is not able to open her mana palaces as that may lead to her organs rupturing. Yet, when we perform Race restoration, even though she will have to start over, her magic ability and knowledge will make up for the setback. For now, she enjoyed listening to us speak, knowing full well what was being said.
"Love, would it be okay to visit a dear friend soon? Her clan may have something exactly right for Katya's growth." Knowing I was looking for high quality elven bloodlines for Katya, she asked.
"Of course, any friend of yours is a friend of mine. Especially in this case, I will be seeing family. All the more reason for us to visit." I replied as a henpeck husband would. Hearing are conversation, Douglas couldn't help but laugh,
"If I didn't know better, I would have thought Ivy has our little ancestor wrapped around her finger. However, I can tell our young ancestor has something else in mind. No matter, regardless of the reason, my clan would be honored to host such prodigious guests. Now back to business. Ancestor Yuriy, I can assume you completed your rite of inheritance for Grand Enchanter Markov, correct?"
"Indeed! Although it occurred well before the rite is supposed to happen, the soul of my ancestor deemed it was the right time for me to take up the mantle." I said, remembering what uncle Yuriy mentioned when telling people what happened in the inheritance realm.
"The souls of the ancestors know and see things we descendants are not aware of. No matter what, a momentous change is about to occur with the blessing of the ancestors in tow. Okay, and last is Madame Katya Markov-Engelberg. It is safe to assume you have the blessing of Grand Military Instructor Engelberg, correct?"
Nodding her head, Katya confirmed his thoughts. I couldn't help but marvel at the information gathering skills of Douglas. He would put the FBI, CIA, Interpol, and Kremlin to shame with how much info he has based on 3 pieces of paper.
"Okay, then I will assign you 3 to a B rank task given the flowing recommendation of Ruby rank adventurer James, and my own take on your abilities. The task will require you to create a party first. There are 3 of you, so you will need 2 other people ready to take on a B Rank task. And as if the Ancestors knew of your coming, there are indeed 2 such adventurers who meet the requirements. Both are downstairs. Let James know and he will introduce you to them."
Finishing everything important, we confirmed a day when we will head to the light Elven settlement, Douglas handed us our league badges and went over how the ranking system works. It was decided, after we complete our B class task, we will head to the Light Elven settlement towards the northeast. Although the settlement is in the same province as the Markov manner, I will take about 8 hours via carriage to reach it. Afterwards we bid Douglas farewell and left the office.
-End of Chapter