Chương 89: Book 2 Chapter 41 - Working For House Yountal

Ron made it to Easton around noon. He had left early enough that he could be back by dinnertime, although Gentry had assured him that she would keep the food warm if he ended up being late. Ava had wanted to come, but with the recent bandit attacks Ron hadn't felt good about bringing her along. He had made the trip to the village north of their own, only to find them holding some kind of village celebration.

They had been wary of him at first, as it was his first time visiting, but after he told them where he was from, they welcomed him with open arms. They had fed him and regaled him with tales of their liberation. Apparently, they had been hit pretty hard by what Ron assumed was the same group of bandits harassing his own village. Three of their villagers had even been taken as slaves by the bandits, after attempting to fight back during one of the bandits' raids on the village.

Those three had returned alive and well, thanks to the help of a kind stranger passing through. They referred to the stranger in reverent tones, calling her 'The Exalted One' and 'The Great Mage'. This mage had apparently wiped out the entire bandit camp without receiving a single scratch in return. Ron couldn't tell how much of it was truth and how much was exaggeration, but they claimed it only took her a few seconds to perform the wondrous feat.

They showed him the bandits' weapons and armor as proof of the bandits' demise. The mage who liberated them had apparently carried the entire pile of weapons and armor to their town in a single trip, an inhuman feat of strength. They had also spoken rather reverently of the sword this mage used to free them of their chains. If their story was to be believed, this mage had cut through all of their chains in a single swipe of her sword, cleaving an entire tree in half in the process.

Something about that seemed unlikely to Ron, but then again he didn't know much about magic. He had asked the villagers up north for a description of the mage, but all three simply said that she was 'beautiful beyond description'. He couldn't get anything else out of them. The fact that the bandit camp had been wiped out the same day that Lady Yountal had come to visit him and his family didn't escape Ron's notice.

He remembered even debating asking if she would be able to help, before discarding the idea as both unlikely and inappropriate. Now, he wondered if she had a hand in it. She was young, beautiful, and a talented fighter who he had personally seen use a sword to fight against a larger opposing force, which fit the story the villagers were telling him. Plus, she had happened to be in the area at that time. He had returned to his family and his village bearing the hopeful news that the bandit problem might be resolved.

The village had been on edge for a full week after his return, hopeful but cautious. Now, after multiple weeks of no bandit sightings, everyone was starting to relax. Ron and Gentry were both worried about what the future might hold, though. Without Lord Grivalt patrolling the area, a new group of bandits could move in anytime they wanted and harass the village again.

It wasn't a certainty that it would happen, but if it did, they would be at the mercy of Baron Norshod for assistance, and both he and his bureaucratic processes were too uninterested in lending aid to be reliable. Under normal circumstances, that situation might just be a fact of life that the Dunsun family had to live with. As luck would have it, though, Lady Yountal had offered them another job with House Yountal.

Originally, moving back to the farm had seemed like the best option: it was a life they were familiar with, with a home that they owned. Being back there though, they were all constantly reminded of Kiara and her absence. With the threat of bandits on top of that, both Ron and Gentry had felt it might be best to take Lady Yountal up on her offer, if it was still available.

They hadn't talked to Ava about it yet, for fear of getting her hopes up only to have the offer fall through on them if Lady Yountal changed her mind. Ava didn't seem as adverse to Lady Yountal now as she had a few months ago. She still harbored some amount of anger or resentment towards Shian that Ron couldn't explain, but it was lessening over time. Both he and Gentry always tried to help her see the good things that Lady Yountal had done for them, which seemed to help.

Now, having arrived at the Yountal Estate, Ron was nervous. He and his family had spent so long discussing the life-altering offer that he now wondered if Lady Yountal was still open to the idea, or if she even remembered it. A servant showed him to a large sitting room off the main entrance, one that Ron had been to before. It was the same room with the broken table which for some reason still had not been cleaned up. The broken furniture reminded Ron of Kiara, and his eyes moistened slightly.

They had been through their fair share of broken chairs and other furniture while raising her. Ron had grown quite good at repairing them. He still remembered when she had been proposed to by Doug back in the village, and how she had knocked the poor boy out accidentally and broken the ring he'd had made for her. A small chuckle escaped his throat at the memory. It was easier to laugh about it now that some time had passed. Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road.

Support the author by reading it there. He was pulled from his reverie as the door to the room opened and Shian Yountal strode in. His thoughts transitioned from thinking of Kiara to the woman in front of him. Her walk was powerful and confident, her posture erect and dignified. Lady Yountal entered the room like a force of nature, and he was reminded once again of how she had stood up to Lord Grivalt for him, protecting him from certain retribution.

He would never forget the scene, her fighting like a dragon against Lord Grivalt and a dozen of his guards. He once again wondered if she had been the 'Great Mage' who eliminated the bandit camp near his farm.

"Hello fa… uh, farmer Ron," she said as she met his eyes. Kind of a strange greeting, but Ron wasn't one to judge the idiosyncrasies of others.

"What a pleasant surprise," she added. He bowed in response.

"Lady Yountal, the pleasure is all mine." She smiled at him.

"What brings you to Easton?" He realized his palms were sweaty from his nervousness, and he wiped them on his pant legs.

"My wife Gentry and I have spent quite a bit of time discussing the offer you made to us when you visited our farm last. I realize it has been a few weeks, and I'm not sure if that offer still stands…"

"It does," she interrupted him. He waited for her to continue, but when she didn't, he jumped back in.

"Ah! Yes, that is wonderful news. In that case, I think we would love to take you up on it."

"Oh?!" Pure excitement shone in her eyes.

"That's great! Do you mind if I ask what helped change your mind?" He breathed in deeply and exhaled, considering how much to share.

"Well, you may or may not know, Lady Yountal, but our village has recently had a problem with bandits." Her eyebrows scrunched in concern.

"How recently?"

"A few weeks ago the problem was a growing one, but it seems that particular problem might have been solved. It seems the bandit camp was wiped out on the same day you visited us, actually. By any chance… did you have any part in that?" She scratched the back of her head awkwardly for a moment.

"Ah. Yeah, I might have." He nodded.

"Well I speak for the whole village when I say thank you. You rendered a service to us that we can never repay. What prompted you to intervene?" She shrugged.

"Somebody needed to do something. I went out to see if I could find their camp. When I did, they were harassing some poor villagers from the village just north of yours. I placed the bandits all under arrest, and told them I would escort them to Easton to turn themselves in to the city guard, but they attacked me instead."

"Yes," he replied.

"The village north of ours was quite elaborate in their descriptions of your heroics. I dare say their thanks exceeds our own considerably." Shian blushed.

"Oh. You went to visit that village?" Ron smiled gently and nodded.

"I did, in an effort to see if they were suffering from the bandits as much as we were. As it turns out, they had suffered quite a bit worse than us. You saved more lives with your actions than just those three villagers you rescued, in my estimation.

"At any rate, bandits in the village was a new experience for us, and not one that we wish to repeat any time soon. If you are still willing to hire me here in Easton, that is an opportunity that we would be happy to accept at this point in time." She smiled at him. It seemed as if her smile reflected more of her own joy and excitement than anything else. He wondered if this had anything to do with her unusually close bond with little Gabe.

That attachment seemed to go both ways, and Gabe had even referred to her as his sister once or twice, probably because she was similar in age to Kiara, and treated him in much the same way that Kiara had. Gabe was too young to explain the difference to, so they simply let it be.

"Yes!" she responded with enthusiasm.

"Yes, of course. We have jobs in whatever area you would like, both for you and Gentry, and even Ava if she wants a job." Ron nodded thoughtfully.

"If we are going to afford a place here in Easton, all three of us will likely need to work, if you are offering."

"Oh, just stay here at the estate," she offered without hesitation. Ron grimaced slightly. It was a wonderful estate, and he was sure that Ava would jump at the opportunity to eat Helga's cooking every day, but he truly doubted they could afford room and board here. He wasn't sure how to put it gently, though.

"We truly appreciate the offer, lady Yountal, but we probably can't afford anything as nice as you have here. We will find something in the more meager areas of Easton, anything will be fine, I'm sure." She got a confused look on her face at that.

"All of my estate staff live here, why would you live anywhere else? Oh!" she slapped her forehead in realization.

"Unless you're looking for more privacy, I totally get that. Just know though, that the servant quarters here are open to you all, free of charge. If you need more privacy though, we can help find you something nearby, and help cover the cost." Ron was confused. Why was she being so generous? She was offering all three of them jobs plus free room and board?

She had done something similar when they first came from Lord Grivalt's estate, but he had always assumed that to be temporary until they got back on their feet. Did she truly offer this same opportunity to all of her servants?

"Oh," she said, "and I should probably add, we recently hired a private magic tutor here at the estate. All of the estate staff are receiving free magic lessons each night, along with private sessions to help them learn more about mana and form a mana core, for those that are able. That might factor into your decision on if you'd like to live here, since it will be easier for you to attend those classes each night the closer you are."