Chapter 13 - Citizenship
-In Leona's room-
Leona had just finished breastfeeding Desmond and stood up to change clothes while clapping her hands.
When Leona was removing some jewelry from her body, she heard the maid come in. "Call Alice here. I'll have her get ready."
"Yes, my Lady." The maid bowed a little and then left.
After the maid left, Leona released a long sigh. "This is very inconvenient. Every time there are guests, I have to replace some beautiful jewelry and change clothes." And then she started taking off her clothes
[....]
System, block my vision for a moment.
[Creating Task...
Used 1 Slot
Status: Working 0%]
[Working 50%...]
[Status: Completed]
Even though it's my second life, I feel bad if I have to lust every time I see my mother.
-In the kitchen-
Even though this was on the ship, this kitchen room was quite big. There were two doors next to each other, a rectangular wooden table in the middle of the room, and a set of tables and chairs near the window. Many cooking utensils were hanging on top of the rectangular table, and a fairly large oven was attached to the wall.
Smoke raised from the oven filled the kitchen, but everyone there paid no attention; they did not dare to make the smallest sound possible; their gaze was fixed on a little girl sitting on a chair. In contrast, the little girl's gaze was fixed on the glass window right in front of her. The little girl swung her legs back and forth several times. Behind the girl, there was a chef who was standing waiting for her.
The chef's forehead was sweating; he held his hat in both hands as he focused on the girl's expression." Do you like it, my lady?"
The girl turned her gaze towards the chef and smiled. "Not bad, it's better than yesterday. The more sugar, the better. Keep this taste for further."
When the chef heard this, he immediately wiped the sweat on his forehead while he drew in a breath and let it settle. "Yes, and thank you, my lady. We work harder than before to meet my lady's requirement."
Simultaneously, a maid entered the kitchen when the chef finished speaking. She bowed a little to the little girl. "Lady Alice, Lady Leona has called you into the room."
The little girl was Alice. When she heard this, she knew that her mother would call her because she'd seen several people coming into the living room with her father from the glass window. She got up from the chair, straightening her clothes. "Fine, I'll be there now."
Alice, who was carrying ice cream, knocked on her mother's room and came inside. When she entered, she saw her mother still looking in the mirror but already dressed in an elegant gown. "Mommy, where are the clothes I'm going to wear?"
"Wait a minute, my sweetie."
Alice saw her little brother sleeping on the bed. She approached him and sat there while waiting. "Come here, my little brother." Alice embraced Desmond, then kissed him.
[....]
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-In the living room-
"So Ms. Noel, if I may know where we will live?"
Noel, who saw Bastian's expression, was shocked. "Take it easy. Grandmaster Weston has decided that your family will live in a house with vast land. We are just here to escort your family there safely," Noel said with a faint smile on her face.
Bastian frowned when he heard this and looked straight at Noel. When he looked into her eyes without speaking for a few seconds, he saw each Guard's hands move towards the handle of the sword, which was ready to be drawn.
"Um ... um ... Honey, am I bothering you?" Bastian stood stunned; he turned around only to see Leona standing behind him while embracing Desmond.
Leona was wearing a gown made from vivid aqua fabric. It had a flared skirt with an A-line waist and a single long wide sleeve, accented with a large bow, while Alice was wearing a gown made from white and copper fabric. It had a poufy skirt with a gathered waist and leg-of-mutton sleeves, accented with beadwork. Bastian was mesmerized. They both looked like a queen and a princess.
Bastian stared at his wife for a long time. "It can't be, dear. We only talked about the house we are going to live in."
"That's right, Mrs," Noel answered while smiling at Leona.
Leona, who saw this, narrowed her eyes for a moment before smiling towards Noel.
Leona and Alice then sat down. When Leona saw the two guards behind Noel, she raised her eyebrows, and a frown appeared on her face. "Did the Grandmaster tell you information about my background?"
"You don't need to worry, Mrs... All the guards I brought are the Master's subordinates," Noel replied with a confident tone while puffing out her chest high.
When Leona heard this, she tilted her head while pressing an index finger to her cheek and propping her chin on the rest of the clenched fingers." 'Master,' hmm.
"Alright, maybe it's a little late. My name is Leona, former noble of the Imperial Empire, and this is my daughter and my son, Alice, and Desmond."
When Alice heard this, she introduced herself in the same way as her father, while Leona just said her name without doing the same thing.
Noel could only force a smile. "Noel, Master Wizard of the North Empire."
"So, are we ready to go?" Noel asked and turned to all members of Bastian's family.
"No problem, sorry to keep you waiting," Leona replied while getting ready to stand up. Bastian just kept quiet and followed his wife.
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-North Empire, Outer City Road-
On the road, Bastian and his family were being escorted by many guards. Bastian, who was in the very back position with Alice, is introducing interesting things to Alice, while Leona and Noel, who are in the front, are chatting like old friends who have just met. Desmond sees his mother laughing while asking some questions to Noel. Noel replied in the same way as his mother.
Desmond, who was being embraced by his mother, was surprised.
Women are strange creatures. Before, on the ship, I thought they would fight each other, but now.
While Desmond wondered, Bastian, who saw his wife acting like this, felt relieved because the misunderstanding had been resolved.
After a few minutes of walking, they arrived at the boundary between the outer city and the inner city. A colossal gate could be seen, separating the city between the inner and outer.
Desmond saw Noel whisper something to the border guards. Desmond also saw Noel take out some papers from her pocket and show them to the border guards. Then Noel came back and spoke, "So before you guys enter Inner City, you will need some further verification, such as the right, you are a Citizen of the North Empire.
"The inner city is vital because many important people, even the royal family, live in this area."
Then Desmond and his family were taken to one of the rooms right next to the gate. Desmond spotted a stone in the room similar to the church's identification stone; it's just that what distinguishes it is the stone's carvings. Two guards and one captain accompanied Bastian and his family and Noel, who were doing verification in the room.
"Go forward one by one and place your hands on the stone table."
Desmond saw his father try first, and then a 3D hologram appeared in front of his father.
{
<.Citizen of North Empire.>
Name: Bastian
Gender: Male
Age: 30
Race: Human
Class: 1st Swordsman / 1st Wizard
Occupation: Merchant
}
"Citizenship check, race check, and name," the guard spoke while writing something on the paper.
The Guard Captain then looked at Bastian. "A genius your age is still young but can reach dual-class. How about you join my unit?" The captain said with a smile while holding Bastian's shoulder and glancing towards Leona.
Bastian was silent. Not a word came out, but his expression showed a threatening look.
"Captain, He's already under the control of Grandmaster Weston," one of the guards whispered to his captain.
"Oh, sorry for my impoliteness, welcome to the North Empire." The captain's behavior changed while pretending to cough.
"Clear, next."
When it was his mother's turn, Desmond saw the two guards and the captain focus their gaze on his mother's body. Noel, who saw this, gave off an aura of intimidation. The guards immediately lowered their heads, but the captain still fixed his gaze.
Desmond, who was previously embraced by his mother, was entrusted to his father. His mother stepped forward while putting her hand on the stone.
{
<. Citizen of North Empire.>
Name: Leona
Gender: Female
Age: 28
Race: Human
Class: 2nd Wizard
Occupation: Merchant
}
The guards and the captain who saw this widened their eyes. "Please forgive us." The captain of the guard apologized in a polite tone as he bowed, not daring to see Leona.
Leona did not speak a single word, but the room temperature changed, giving a cold temperament.
After all the Bastian family checks, they headed towards Inner City.