"Your heir's safety is my chief responsibility as his mother," Isis placed the back of her hand on her forehead as if she were feeling faint from the pressures of motherhood. "How could I let Ke Si act so unruly with no explanation? This is obviously challenging my authority, which, according to our vows, is to be viewed no differently than your authority, my Lord. I will not stand for such an offense to you, much less myself. Not from him or any of these honored elders. Therefore, he must be punished."
As usual, First Lady Isis used her sweetest voice when she spoke to her husband. Although it was true that their marriage wasn't ideal, Isis took her wedding vows incredibly seriously. No matter what, this man was her sky, and Josiah was her sun. The Lord momentarily wore a helpless look. Except for the elders Lady Isis had greeted before, all the surrounding elders grimaced.
"You dare attack the affairs elder!? You are growing more rampant and lawless. Do you believe this estate is your playground, my lady? There are rules!"
"Are there?" replied Lady Isis sluggishly, indifferently glancing at this seated elder from the Fang Faction.
"How audacious!" said a seated elder from the Myriad Rune Faction.
"You should watch your tongue, my lady. You would dare to talk back to your lord husband!?" Monte Trillwolf chimed in with a smile.
Osiris could not even handle his own woman. It was as if the brat wanted to hand the House Lord position over willingly.
"I'm sorry, brother-in-law, but are you my Lord or husband? I know you have such a desire, but the latter position is ultimately not yours. Is it your turn to reprimand the House Lord's woman?" said Lady Isis without bothering to look at Monte.
"Little miss, you had best mind your position…" warned the other seated elder from the Windstorm Faction.
"Be silent." Lord Osiris' voice boomed through the room. His hands massaged his temples as he looked to his wife, "Isis, the council has decided to test Josiah's capability. Some feared you would object to this process, so we asked Ke Si to retrieve Jody once he awakened. We did not expect that you would come here yourself."
"The first thing I did once he awoke was bring him to you, his father. Yet, to think you would think so little of your son's mother. That I would be so petty as to not listen to reason. Or is the reason what you fear I will not like? Test his capability?" Lady Isis frowned, changing her demeanor to that of a cold and emotionless ice queen, no longer speaking sweetly to her husband.
Her son, Josiah, was her reverse scale.
"House Lord Trillwolf," Isis straightened her posture and spoke without her usual sensuality, "With all due respect, my son will be three tomorrow. He's barely a toddler. Children are usually tested after age five. Initiating the awakening before that is incredibly dangerous for the child. I know Josiah's origin is likely already awakening on its own, but must we be hasty? This seems a little inappropriate, no?"
"Audacious! Who are you to question your Lord husband? Your position as the estate's Frozen Night Master clouds your judgment as the First Lady. It does not even qualify you to be so outrageous," said the other elder from the Fang Faction.
"She has no respect, my Lords! A woman needs to…ah… sister Charlotte, of course, I was only… never mind." One of the elders from the Slaughter Faction also wanted to speak up, but one of the exalted disciples sent a glare sharper than blades in his direction.
"Hmph, many of us have said these same words as the First Lady. The boy is too young for this assessment. In normal situations, this assessment can barely be given to five-year-olds, let alone a two-year-old. She is perfectly right to worry," said exalted disciple Charlotte Slaughter to the House Lord.
She was one of two females on the executive board and a Five Element Wolf Pack member, so her word held more weight than many of the elders present.
"Indeed, we are putting the boy at risk here. Shouldn't we consider this further?" asked a female seated elder from the Windstorm Faction.
"Yes, after all, the young Lord is still one of us, a Trillwolf. He is of superior birth and talent; isn't this something we should celebrate? All of this fuss seems unnecessary," said a seated elder of the Black Faction.
"You saw the terrifying fire produced by this child! Questions must be answered. We are at risk if we remain ignorant! How many families have we had to compensate since yesterday alone?" demanded the other seated elder from the Black Faction.
"The lady is too sentimental. It is merely a small test," said a short, chubby elder in crimson robes. He had small eyes and a minor overbite.
This elder was named Blood Fang, one of the representatives of the Fangs Faction of House Trillwolf. He was the first elder to admonish the First Lady and the one she had the most challenging time not sealing in serenity ice.
"A small test?" repeated Lady Isis through gritted teeth. Jody knew his mother was growing agitated when he felt more protective energy film cover him again. He opened his mind's eye to see his mother's aura slowly leak out as she gnashed her teeth. Her voice rose into a low shout, "What kind of test is that, Elder Blood Fang? Source spirit assessment? Do you want him to use a fate gem? Both of these require a tremendous amount of stress on the boy's soul. I will not allow any of you to harm or cripple my child!"
Her last words echoed throughout the chamber and pierced the heart of everyone who heard. No one would doubt her steadfast conviction to war with the world if it meant protecting her child.
"Hmph," snorted Elder Blood Fang, dissatisfied with the fact that he felt intimidated just now. "I admit that your second stage Void Door Sage formula is impressive, but do not think you can swagger as you please with merely this."
"Void Door? Hmph, you may think what you like, you fool. Just know that, at the very least, I can convert you into an ice sculpture for my garden," spat Lady Isis in a tone as cold as 10,000-year-old ice before completely restraining her aura.
Elder Blood Fang suddenly felt cold all over, as if he just realized something.
Jody also considered the five ice sculptures currently in his mother's garden. He always felt they were ugly and out of place but had only felt his mother was eccentric. He couldn't help but be impressed as he looked up at his mother. She was scary enough, all right!
"You…" Elder Blood Fang's face twisted hideously.
Little Joe snickered, drawing the room's attention to himself accidentally. After being bewildered for a few seconds, Jody looked up at his mother again, only to find her smiling down at him.
"Ma, can we unfreeze Ke Si? He's always so nice to me," Jody looked at his mother with pleading eyes, taking advantage of the instant their eyes met.
Isis inwardly sighed, as this gave her a timely way out of this tense moment. Isis gave her son a thumbs up in her mind, as she was hoping to turn this around somehow. After all, what she wanted was respect. She didn't actually disagree with Jody being tested.
However, no one would touch him if she couldn't be present. There was absolutely no way Isis would permit it. Even if she wanted to test her son early, how could she let these men do as they wished without her consent?
The elders in the room, who but for a few mainly were unfamiliar with this third young master, were quietly surprised. They looked astonished as they stared at the little blue-eyed child. To speak out at this moment was something only a child who couldn't sense the mood would do. However, no one could be upset with the boy.
He just wanted to help his friend. Some elders were pleased by this attitude, as the boy chose justice over favoritism, risking his mother's wrath to support the head butler, who was nice to him. Certain elders even decided to spoil this third young Lord a bit in case they ever pissed off the First Lady. He could save them from becoming garden sculptures one day.
Lady Isis had a feeling that Jody's timing wasn't a coincidence. After all, he had not reacted when she attacked Ke Si. At that point, Isis had already grown doubtful. If her son showed any emotion back then, it was only excitement. This little boy was becoming more mysterious every day.
"As you wish, my little heartbeat," Lady Isis' eyes remained indifferent as she waved her hand. The serenity ice encasing Ke Si immediately shattered into blue and purple dust that merged into Isis' aura. Ke Si fell to the ground, shivering, shaken to the core, when he heard Isis' sultry voice again, "Ke Si, as my son has pleaded for leniency towards you, I will relent. I hope you do not make challenging me a habit for your own sake. The next time, you will become a decoration."
As soon as Lady Isis finished speaking, she felt her little son trying to struggle out of her embrace. She grimaced in annoyance. Was being held by her so unpleasant? Enora's young son would throw a fit whenever the former placed him down. Meanwhile, her son was the exact opposite. Isis pouted and released her son, using her mana to put him on his feet gently. Jody dashed over to Ke Si with his little arms trailing behind. He stopped before Ke Si and crossed his small chest in a Trillwolf House salute.
"Ke Si, I'm sorry we froze you. You tried to bully my mom, but Pop says it wasn't your fault, on the count of it was the other old guys that wanted to bully Mom. Don't be mad at my mom, okay? You shouldn't have bullied her, and Pops shouldn't have let you, okay?" Jody stared straight into Ke Si's eyes.
Being penetrated by that pure gaze made Ke Si feel like this child could see through all lies.
Ke Si straightened himself up, then knelt on one knee to look little Josiah in the face. "Yes, my little Lord. Ke Si knows what to do now. Don't you worry."
"'Kay," Came the boy's voice from a distance.
Jody immediately turned around and walked away after hearing 'Yes, little lord,' leaving Ke Si stunned before he slightly smiled and stood back up.
He slowly stood up, unable to contain his conflicting emotions of surprise and exhaustion. Feeling awkward, he retreated into the shadows and vanished from sight.
"Pops," said Jody softly after joining his mother again.
Lord Osiris was wearing white and gold and a rare pair of glasses. Mystical tattoos glowed in minor sagelight on his torso and arms. He had never taken his eyes off his son. Jody was also acutely aware of this but chose to seem oblivious.
It was clear that everyone had their suspicions. As far as Jody was concerned, his mother releasing him from her arms in this situation also proved her doubts. He had to think fast and work faster.
A sly smirk flashed across his father's face, leaving the rest of them all wondering what was going through his mind. Osiris slowly sat back in his chair and spoke, "In this hall, you must address this father of yours as Lord of the House. Do you understand me, Josiah Trillwolf?"
"House Lord Pops," Jody acquiesced instantly, nearly flooring everyone in the room.
This kid was so pure it hurt their ears. The way he spoke made it seem as if learning to speak was so easy for him that he failed to appreciate the subtleties of grammar.
Little Jody often shortened words or used unique phrases they had never heard before. All of their imposing pretenses seemed like flies on the wall when the boy spoke.