My st problem about lunch with my wives was getting up when I was fihey all are more than happy to go on about the bird in the forest. They even try t me into it, asking what I think about some pn of theirs like I have any experieside of fug nobles.

  I guess I have fucked a few oners and maids as well, but my point still stands.

  They are trying to get the Prio agree with their pn, I guess. Vanya seems fident that their current pn will work, but the Princess is worried they don't have the numbers for everything or something. Holy, I think the Princess is just making things up to keep me here longer. Her hand has fallen to my thigh a few times. It hasn't done anything, but it is annoying how it almost feels f haviouch me.

  Something must have been put in the soup for that feeling to happen.

  Isda also seems a bit lost. She refuses to look me in the eyes. I guess she's sorry for not ing to me or something. The rest of the pretty women are more than happy to smile and look at me.

  Elyne is another with some fear in her eyes. I'm guessing horses and dragons don't get along, and that assed on to taurs and dragonkin. I feel a little bubbly looking at her, so maybe the fear is one-sided.

  Ioena's hair is really cute, with her pink strands woven into all her braids. I 't wait to get to tie my hair up. Mommy always wao cut it, but since I was sixteen, I've been growing it out. I had the hairstyle all picked out for the css ceremony. The first time, I would be allowed to tie it up.

  But the damn colr went around my neck. I've kept the hairstyle updated to include my new length, but I don't know how much longer I go before I step on my hair. Princess better not make me cut it. The Mistress said my hair was too pretty to cut, but this Princess has straastes.

  "I think that will work out," the Princess says. Oh, please let me go. "Thank you all freat lunch. Thank you, Alzi, for joining us and helping Inanos aia today. I'll have Aurora take you around the rooms soon to pick out where you wish to start your healer journey. We're all excited to see where it takes you."

  "Thank you for letting me learn about mana," I say, getting up from my chair.

  "o thank me for that," the Princess says. "You deserved to learn about mana a decade ago, and I'm more than happy to help my wife learn. Please enjoy the rest of your day, everyone. I know you all have pag to do."

  The wives all give out different thanks and what not. Some directed me to join them. Not that I stick around to hear them.

  I promptly get up when the Princess dismisses us and look for Aurora. Sure enough, she has her small smile on, clearly mad about my swift exit. But fuck it, I was only here to lower how much I had to walk.

  "This way, my Lady," Aurora says with a short bow. "We start with the front door. I made sure you were added to it."

  "They wao call this my new home, and I wasn't even allowed to walk into it without a chaperone?" I say just before the doors close behind me.

  "We needed an example of your mana to add you to the door. You were able to get in the sed day you were here. I just did not teach you how, and for that, I am sorry, my Lady," Aurora says. "I should have made sure you knew how to open the door immediately. I am fixing that pse today."

  Aurora leads me to the front of the house and out into the chilled air. The front door closed ahead of me again.

  "Now, like I said when you asked, just push a bit of your mana into the door, and it will open," Aurora says, showihe door open.

  "What if I run out of mana?" I ask.

  "You would be passed out and uo move through the door anyway, my Lady," Aurora says. "If you don't have enough mana to open the door, you won't be making it inside anylease give it a try, my Lady."

  She shuts the dain. I guess it locks automatically as she moves to the side to watch me.

  I put my hand on the handle and move my mana into the door. I see it glow for a sed, and the me open it.

  "Why did it glow?" I ask.

  "You used more mana than needed, my dy," Aurora says. "It is a warning to stop sending it mana. It will be a on warning for the ruoday. Most just need a tad to do their task."

  Aurora moves into the house and down a hallway. I have to chase after her again. Is she just trying to get me to not wear rge heels? Or is she still mad about lunch?

  "Is something wrong," I ask her.

  "No my Lady," Aurora says, tinuing her brisk pace.

  "Then why are you walking quickly everywhere?"

  "I have several of these I wish to get through, then a bit of history so ractice reading after dinner," Aurora says, turning into another room. "Sorry for not expining what a drawing room is. But this is an example of one—a bigger-sized ohan most, I would say. You will have a parlor and a drawing room for the tea party tomorrow."

  "Why didn't you warhat the party was tomorrow?" I ask. The room does look vaguely like our living room. Chairs lining the room, tables for drinks, and even a few tables that look like they are made fames. I wonder if they py hunting grounds? Would the Princess get annoyed with my turtling strategy or would she be so good at the game I just get crushed?

  Looking around, it seems the rooms will also have a color scheme. Or maybe they all share the light green look? A light brown for all the wood? Another forest room, I suppose.

  "This way, my Lady. This could be useful for the party," Aurora says, moving over to the small bar to the side. "This has a few different runes for you to use. One for making ice, another for heating water up, and ao call over a maid. You should only use the id call ones. Let the maid hahe drinks, and only use the ice if yetting a few ice cubes. Otherwise, let the maid hahat as well. You are a noble, o serve the women at the party."

  "My question," I say, looking over the bar. There are so many fancy gsses—short, tall, wide, skinny. The drink portion is missing, or the maids know how to make it appear.

  "Of course, my Lady. I simply was not told the date. I k was tomorrow or the day after. I learned about it shortly before you did," Aurora says. "Now, these are the runes. I am not a ruer, so I only expin so much. Princess Elora should be able to expin more about them. But what I say is never send mana into a rune you do not uand. A single rune may not be able to do much, but array masters turn them into powerful maes that will bleed you dry of mana or inflict terrible curses and all sorts of things. I will start having the ones I know to be part of the lessons, and we work on making sure you tell them apart. This one here is for ice, this is for heat, and this one is for calling a maid."

  The runes look nothing like what they should. I would've though they would appear like what they do. But no, just more squiggly lio fuse me. Eae is in a little box.

  "Ok, they work the same as the door. Move a little mana into them, and they will do what the rune shows. Some call this the nguage of the Goddesses, but champions are not able to read them naturally, so most think it is a cheap copy of their true nguage. You give the ie a try and then call the maid. It should go to me so we do not have to worry about b others."

  "Ok," I say. I try doing this ohout toug it. Just sending a small strand of mana towards the two characters. This time, I mao keep them from glowing. A small pile of ice slowly forms uhe ice character and Aurora sches her face up.

  "That is enough, I think, my Lady," Aurora says. I y mana for her, and she turns the ito water and makes it disappear into thin air. "Sorry, the ringing is loud. When you use it, try to just send a short strand; we will know where to go."

  "What if the closest maid is busy?" I ask her.

  "We have ways of signaling others and will make sure you are served, my Lady. You are the star of tomorrow; you will have all three of your maids and a number of the housemaids w the party," Aurora expins. "I will try to stay near you, but that will not always be possible. Depending on what you wear tomorrow, I may be able to give you a device that call over maids that you hold in your pocket; otherwise, raise your hand as I instructed or use this. I will make sure to show you all the call ruomorrow before or during the party if needed."

  "Thanks. Anything else I should know?" I ask.

  "Try to have fun. The others are the brothel girls looking for the man to pick them. You have me or Annoris join you in bed, and the woman will have a maid who also join in. All of it will be your choice," Aurora says. "You may be forced to go to the brothel, but you pick the girl this time."

  "I don't want it."

  "You know very well the world does not care what you want. I do not wish to have pain when I am not serving a woman with a breeder css," Aurora says. "The Goddesses have set up the world in a way that requires men to share their seed more than they would like."

  "What else do you want to show me," I say. What a step up in this world. How is this any different than my st party at the brothel?

  The other men did say they did this as well. I guess that is why they rarely came by. Hard to enjoy a brothel when you work at one.

  "Mainly just more ruhat you should know about around the house," Aurora says. "Most are some sort of defense system in case people try to kidnap you. Now that you trol your mana, you should learn to use them."

  "Could someone really get in here?" I ask as we leave the vish room.

  "Yes, hink a pce is perfectly secure. Not even in Princess Elora's arms with Geta in front of you and Vanya behind," Aurora says. "Someone always get to you."

  Aurora tio move quickly through the house. Every hallway had two call runes: one for a maid and another for help with an intruder. She said they may even add a third, a call button for me, in case one needs a healer.

  Some of the side hallways even had a ruhat would send out some death trap to kill intruders in the hallway. Aurora didn't let me test those, which probably is a good idea. I don't know how they picked the hallways, but they don't seem to be the best pe. Always in small hallways that lead to nowhere.

  "My Lady, I wish to show you the heating rune on your baly, and then we have dinner and your writing lesson. This took lohan I thought it would," Aurora says. "The heating rune is another ohat will stay on till you turn it off. It is right here by the door."

  I saw the standard scribbles in a box o the door frame, along with the other runes.

  "Ok, time for dinner," Aurora says, pulling me baside.