171: Permanent

“Morning, Lily,” I muttered.

I was still surrounded by her, so it appeared that she hadn’t moved at all during the night. As I started to move, Lily just uncurled and rolled over, seemingly going back to sleep on the bed. Crisplet had not moved at all. After a quick glance, no one was lying on the floor.

“That’s a good start!” I said.

Crisplet let off a burst of sparks and started to shrink.

Heading downstairs and into the dining room, all eyes landed on me instantly.

“What happened last night?” Milo said.

I just looked at him, confused. Everyone looked exhausted. What had happened?

“No one could sleep on your side of the house yesterday,” Jen said.

“Lily and Crisplet didn’t like the potion I took, so they insisted on watching me through the night,” I said.

It was only then that I noticed Liane was in the corner with a blanket over her head, still asleep. Milo and Jen both looked exhausted, and Hari, George, and Darren were nowhere to be found.

“Could you speak with her about it?” Jen asked.

Milo nodded in agreement. “I wasn’t so worried about the sleep, but I couldn’t use the library either.”

“I’ll try. I tried to reassure them it was okay, but Lily didn’t want me to drink that potion at all,” I said, taking a seat.

“Makes sense that. They are both beings made predominantly of mana, and that potion, although it wouldn’t really hurt them in that dosage, absorbs and destroys mana,” Milo said.

“Still though, we need to address it,” Jen said, her head now in her arms.

Looking down at Crisplet, who had just been observing it all, “Crisplet, do you think you could talk to Lily? You can both protect me, but you need to calm down on the aura.”

There was a burst of sparks, followed by a groan in the corner.

I made a simple breakfast for everyone with strips of boar belly, eggs, and toasted bread. Liane woke up at the smell of bacon and, although she didn’t say anything, she did gently clip me on the back of the head.

“Yeah, yeah, I’m sorry. I’ll talk to Lily. She was just worried,” I said, plating everything up, giving Liane extra bacon and eggs before taking the rest out to the others.

Sitting down to eat my own meal, I wanted to discuss my plans for today.

“Any chance we could go to the markets today? I wanted to get some more supplies before the chefs arrive tomorrow,” I asked, looking between Milo and Jen.

Liane and Crisplet were still both in the kitchen.

“It might be best if you give Archie a list, Trev. Micca has builders and interviews at the shop today. Hari is there to assist, along with George and Darren as guards. I’m in no position to guard you if House Valrith tries something again, alone,” Jen said.

Milo nodded. “You also have a meeting with House Fellwood today, you remember, right?”

I didn’t remember at all, and I also felt disappointed. Is this what all people with a house had to deal with? No wonder they all seemed grumpy so far.

Milo slid over a notebook and a charcoal stick. “Write what you need and Archie will get it sorted for you. It’ll be nice to have the house staff do something other than hide from Lily and dust the statues.”

Jen chuckled at that.

“If you want something to do in the meantime, practise your mana control. What is your mana at this morning, anyway?” Milo said.

I pulled up my status.

Name: Trevor Ashmoon

Class: Arcane Chef

Rarity: Rare

Level: 25

Experience: 4342/23796

Hit points: 340/340

Mana: 332/690

Stamina: 338/340

Strength: 13

Dexterity: 34

Endurance: 34

Intelligence: 69

Wisdom: 33

Charisma: 10

Willpower: 13

Perception: 8

This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

Luck: 6

Unspent: 0

It had been a long time since I properly looked at my stats. I had always just glanced at pieces of it as I went.

“332 out of 690,” I said simply to Milo.

“A little less than expected, but I’m guessing you were slightly above half before breakfast then,” Milo said.

I was also excited to finally start raising my level again, and with Micca getting the shop open, with luck people would start using the food and that experience would grow. I doubt I could convince Lily to leave and get experience at this point, especially not in the city, and certainly not with potions.