[Chapter Size: 1700 Words.]
Third Person POV
Cintra, northern kingdoms.
...
...
As Madara and Cirilla walked toward Mousesack's laboratory, the princess could not contain her excitement. The guard still looked at Madara like a hawk, still wondering who this boy was and how he had ended up in an audience with the queen and was instructed by the wizard to go to his laboratory accompanied by the princess, who was so excited it strongly contrasted with the calm Madara usually maintained.
"Did you see, Madara? Did you see how my grandmother agreed to everything? That means you're going to stay here with me! We're going to do so many things together!" Cirilla jumped for joy, her eyes shining with the excitement of a future full of adventures alongside Madara, thinking she could even join him on his hunts, in her imagination.
Madara, keeping calm, simply nodded in response, but without agreeing with the girl. "Yes, it seems I'll be around for a while," he said.
"I can't wait to show you everything in the castle! And, of course, you'll have to teach me some things too. Maybe, how to be a warrior!!" Cirilla's excitement continued, while the guard did not seem to appreciate it much.
"Teach you? Even if I tried, your grandmother didn't seem to like such a thing," Madara responded calmly.
"I'll talk to her! You'll see how she'll allow me to fight with you!" Cirilla seemed convinced, while Madara remained silent as they walked through the castle, climbing the stairs again.
He might not show much, but Madara liked Cirilla. Though the princess's imagination soared high, dreaming of almost surreal possibilities for someone of her status, she was, despite being spoiled, quite cheerful.
"We're here!" Cirilla announced, pushing the huge door with some effort. Madara helped her, and they were faced with Mousesack's laboratory.
It was the first time Madara had seen a wizard's laboratory, observing the place in silence. The space was filled with books, scrolls, and various magical instruments, which was quite predictable for Madara, after playing The Witcher 3.
"Look, Madara! This is Mousesack's laboratory. There are so many interesting things here, but I don't know much!" Cirilla began to explore the place with childlike curiosity, having Madara by her side.
She turned to the royal guard who had also entered the room, "You can leave us." She requested.
"That's not appropriate, princess..." The man spoke, but the princess seemed determined about it.
"You don't need to, we're in Mousesack's laboratory and Madara is a guest by my grandmother's invite, you can leave us." She spoke with a tone harsher than usual, but amusingly childlike, the man, albeit reluctantly, nodded in the end and left the place to stand outside.
Madara looked surprised at this but didn't say anything. Meanwhile, she chattered about everything she could, and that continued until the door opened again with the wizard entering after the meeting with the queen. When Mousesack entered the laboratory, he found Madara sitting next to Cirilla on one of the chairs while the girl talked and smiled.
He ended up smiling with satisfaction at Madara's decision to stay in Cintra under the protection and patronage of Queen Calanthe. This was a chance for the boy to help the kingdom someday and even be loyal over the years. "Madara, I am genuinely pleased that you have decided to accept the queen's offer. I believe your presence here will be beneficial both for you and for the kingdom of Cintra," Mousesack began, clearly satisfied as Madara nodded his head and the princess by his side opened a wide smile. "Now, let's talk about what we expect during your stay and how we can help you integrate and make the most of this time." He said.
Mousesack then turned to a table covered in scrolls and artifacts, "Firstly," Mousesack continued, "we will arrange your accommodation. You will have a room in the castle, near the wing along with the soldiers. I hope that won't be a problem for you." He asked.
"No, it's not," Madara calmly responded.
"Great, I want you to have the opportunity to learn our language, the history of this kingdom, and, of course, about the magic that permeates these lands. This will not only help you adapt better but will also increase your knowledge," he said before continuing. "You will have access to our weapons masters and combat trainers. I hope you can teach them with your unique type of combat."
Before Madara or Cirilla could respond, Mousesack continued once more. "Your responsibility towards Princess Cirilla will be paramount. We expect you to protect her but also to contribute to her education. There is much you can teach her, and I'm sure she might even behave better," he said, smiling at the girl, who had always been imperious and tended to leave her grandmother quite worried.
"But I wanted Madara to stay closer to me!" Cirilla protested, clear disappointment in her voice. "How is he going to protect me if he's so far away?"
"That's the most appropriate protocol, princess," Mousesack said and started to walk. Finally, Mousesack approached Madara, now exclusively interested in Madara and his abilities, but with a friendly face. "I know your powers seem to come from a different energy than chaos, this is due to your unique and never-before-seen abilities. I would be very grateful if you could share what you can about your unique condition, after all, I would like to learn more about you," he said in the end.
Cirilla, who had been listening attentively until then, could not contain her excitement. "This is going to be amazing, Madara! You'll see, we're going to explore the castle every day and we can train too!" She said.
Madara didn't respond to the girl but looked at Mousesack, giving a small nod after what he heard, expecting something like the last part, after all, the wizard had never hidden his interest in him, and Madara respected him because he never forced him to reveal his secrets.
"Can we go to training now?" Cirilla asked quickly by the side.
"No, and don't expect that you will have that training with your grandmother not allowing it," Mousesack said while Cirilla pouted.
"Anyway, your maid is waiting outside, I would like to spend my time with Madara for him to adapt to the place while I show him his new accommodations," he said.
Despite the protest, Cirilla ended up leaving with them as she was guided by her maid and her guard to the higher floors. Madara, on the other hand, started to descend with the wizard to his new quarters. They quickly arrived after some time in a simple room, with a few pieces of furniture and a straw bed.
He looked around the place without caring much, even for him it would be quite beneficial being close to the accommodations of the servants and soldiers, being a "commoner" in the eyes of the court meant less unwanted attention, allowing him greater freedom to move and act, but this could still change with his proximity to the kingdom's princess.
"I believe you still have things to pick up at that place you've settled in, right?" Mousesack said, and Madara nodded.
"Yes, can I get my things without being barred when I return?" He calmly asked.
"Yes, I'll speak with the guards, you can leave and come back," he said, and Madara left, heading out of the castle through the front entrance after being told he could leave. Madara exited the castle and began leaping through the city as soon as he left, reaching his old house and picking up everything he could before returning to the castle.
When he arrived, the guards were already aware of the strange child who would live in the lower rooms by the order of the mage himself, which attracted quite a bit of attention to Madara at that moment, especially when Cirilla's maid commented on the contact this unknown boy had with the princess.
Madara didn't care about those looks and went towards his room, arranging things while he stored his kunais that he brought and saw that he needed a new sword too. Soon night arrived, and Madara didn't even go to dinner in the place where the servants ate. The next day, after Madara had settled in, he was surprised by Mousesack, who sought him out again.
"I knew you were awake," he said, and Madara just nodded with a curious look.
Seeing this, Mousesack said, "Well, I want to talk privately with you. Could you accompany me to my laboratory?" He said, and Madara nodded, already dressed and with a kunai at his waist.
They returned to the laboratory, and Mousesack went to a scroll with the city's map on his desk. "Well, I called you here for a matter of your interest," he began, and Madara approached, immediately understanding what it was about.
"You've already taken down two gangs on your own, but there are still two more gangs in the capital involved in these kidnappings, a situation that even the army has struggled to combat with my investigation. As you said, there's a wizard involved in this, and I've been working since that time to find out who it is, but still without success," Mousesack explained the situation.
"We've been fruitless, but the queen and I believe that, with your unique abilities, you could help us solve this problem more effectively, although I believe you were planning to do this anyway. But Cintra is willing to give you resources and men this time," he said.
"You didn't even need to ask for that," Madara says, after all, this was an ongoing matter that he planned to start resolving as soon as he could finish the 3 jobs and enhance his system. This was the occasion at this moment, and it would be even easier when he has Cintra's soldiers giving support.
"That's great, I've summoned the commander of the royal guard, we will meet him soon to discuss our steps to start this operation, but first, your reward for the jobs you did before this," he announced, picking up a bag, and Madara was hoping to reach 5% of his power with that.