Adam eventually returned back to the Rot family estate, finding that his spellbook was exactly where he had left it, no doubt left untouched. Adam looked around to the children, and he narrowed his eyes at them. “Did any of you take a peek inside my book?”

  One of the Rot family children puffed out their cheeks incredulously. “No. We did not py with your spellbook.”

  “Are you calling us thieves?” another pined. “We are of the Rot family, we do not steal.”

  “No thief,” a particurly young girl reprimanded, pointing at Adam. “Bad.”

  “I was just asking,” Adam replied, chug. He couldn’t help but tease the children. “Of course the good little boys and girls of the Rot family would not peek in my spellbook.” Adam’s eyes fell to Jarot. “Though, I say the same for the old elder?”

  “No! Bad!” the little Iyrman girl admonished, but the slightly older children noted who he was looking at.

  “Even if granduncle is silly, he did not peek,” a young teen said, assuring Adam.

  Adam snickered, his lips f a wide, teasing smile. “Even these kids know you’re like that?”

  “What else do they know but the ad granduncle who could not help but spoil them?” Jarot replied, with not an ounce of shame in his voice. These children all only khe Jarot which had been born after the deaths of his children and grandchild, the same Jarot who still regretted allowing his brother and sister, Zaool and Tangak, to die back then.

  One of the children stared at Adam, and then to Jarot. ‘Is Cousin Adam granduncle’s grandson?’ they thought, noting the simirities in their behaviour.

  “Did they bully you?” Jarot asked, referring to the Great Elders. “I reprimand them for bullying my grandson.”

  Adam made a face at the old man as he packed up his spellbook. “No, they didn’t. They just asked me to expin all the maths.”

  Jarot narrowed his eyes, but he children were looking at him, so quickly ged his expression to something more obviously pyful. “Maths? I do not know what the Gods were thinking when they introduced such a thing to this world.”

  “How else are you going to t how mas you’ve sin?” Adam joked.

  Jarot chuckled. “I suppose it does have some use!” He had to be careful not to instil a sense of distaste towards maths in front of the children. Jurot, who had never been good at maths, had refused to learn more than necessary because of a joke he had made when the boy was young.

  “Will you e to teach our Churot tomorrow?” Mulrot asked.

  “I haven’t felt lucky for three days now, so ces are I’ll be lucky tomorrow,” Adam said. “I most likely won’t e tomorrow, but I hope that Churot will keep practising all the maths.”

  “Yes,” the boy replied, writing some equations in his book.

  “Alright, I’ll see you all ter,” Adam said, waving at the Rot family, before heading back to the shared family estate.

  Once Adam returned back to the shared family estate, he watched as the families were all ready to eat, this time the Gak family cooking. Adam could already feel the tingle of spice which would numb his lips.

  “I heard that you were called by Elder Teacher,” Sonarot asked, cutting some of the egg and salya pancakes for her daughter.

  “He and the Chief wanted me to expin some of the things I was teag Churot, that’s all,” Adam replied. “I’m still surprised by hht he is.”

  “He has always been smart,” Sonarot stated, not for the first time. “It is a wohat he es from our family.”

  Adam smiled. “What are you saying? Lanababy is going to grow up so big and strong and smart.”

  Lanarot looked up at Adam upon hearing him call for her, biting into the pancakes which she had first beguing so long ago because of him. “Hee!” She smiled at his smile, befoing back to eating her food.

  Shikan and Raool reacted first to the stranger who roag them from one of the four pathways, but as quickly as they had tensed up, they had rexed.

  Older, and of average height, with a lean but muscur form, it was one of the most well known figures in the Iyr currently.

  “It Lion King,” Taygak said, pointing at him.

  Ashmir smiled. He remembered that the girl had reacted the same way when they had first met. “I hope I am not b you.”

  “No,” Halikan, Shikan’s wife, replied. Adam wondered if she replied because she was the highest ranking person around. He was certain that it was Halikan who married into the Kan family, and he didn’t know which family she had inally e from.

  “I’ve e for Adam,” Ashmir said.

  Adam narrowed his eyes, and for a moment he wondered if he did something wrong, but those thoughts were quickly pushed away. ‘There’s no way I actally started trouble with him.’ Adam furrowed his brows further. ‘Actually, that’s not true.’

  “Adam?” Ashmir called, staring at the boy as he thought.

  “Oh, sorry,” Adam said. “What do you need?” he asked, getting up to find a pce to talk with him.

  “I’ve e to invite you to my wedding,” Ashmir said. “It has been finalised for the end of this month.”

  “Oh,” Adam said. “gratutions!”

  “You bring all the Rot family you want to sit at the front,” Ashmir said. He only partly uood what happe the weddings of the Iyrmen.

  “You came all this way to invite me? I feel like I’m some kind of big shot.” Adam chuckled.

  “Aren’t you?” Ashmir asked. “There are as many Iyrmen who know me who also know you.”

  “Am I that much of a celebrity?” Adam tio chuckle. “Well, I appreciate that you’ve e all this way. Do you want to eat some spicy food?”

  “How spicy it be?” Ashmir asked, raising his brow. He was Aswadian, spiess was in his blood. As one of the most famous gdiators, he was given the ce to taste all manner of spices, and sometimes, poisons.

  “It was the Gak family who cooked this time,” Adam said, motioning his head to the Devilkin.

  “Ah,” Ashmir replied, uanding that the food would be properly spicy. “Then I will accept a bowl before I leave.”

  Lanarot stared up at the rge man, who held such dark skin. She began to whimper before she cried, causing her mother to pick her up.

  “Lanarot,” Adam called, filled with a sense of awkwardness. “You ’t keep g every time you see a Bck guy!” The first time the girl had seen Dunes, who was all but firmed to be Ashmir’s son, she had also reacted the same way.

  “Bck?” Ashmir asked, raising his brow at the young man.

  Adam stared at Ashmir, puzzled, before his brows shot up in shock. “ht. That sort of thing probably does yet.”

  Ashmir threw Adam a curious look, all the while Adam shook his head, rubbing his forehead. “What does that mean?”

  “Where I e from…” Adam shook his head. “No, never mind. It’s probably best we don’t talk about it.” Adam had to be careful in bringiain things to this world.

  Ashmir wondered if perhaps Adam was trying to disparage him for being Aswadian, but sidering how close he was to his son, and that he was quite weling to the Iyrmen and himself, he wasn’t so sure.

  Lanarot eventually calmed down, staring at the Aswadian gdiator, who was littered with scars from his history. She eventually squirmed out of her mrasp, who held onto the girl’s waist, before she dropped down to eat her food again.

  The children swarmed Ashmir ohey were finished with eating, jabbering at him in their nguage at first, before they realised he wasn’t any good at speaking it. When Sonarot stood up, Lanarot looked up towards her mother, before standing up, the food on her p dropping on her foot. She stood firmly, her legs pnted on the ground like a pair of tree trunks. She stumbled towards her mother, her feet smming down on the ground, before she grabbed her mother’s leg.

  Adam blinked. “Does that t? That ts, right?” Adam said, pointing to his sister.

  “Well done, Lanarot,” Sonarot said.

  Adam waited, all the while the other Iyrmen praised her, petting her head, brushing her hair. However, Adam pulled the girl from her mother, using his trick, Tricks, to her up, before he hugged her tight.

  “Look at how big and strong you’ve bee,” Adam said, pnting a kiss on her forehead, rog her bad forth in his arms.

  The attention caused her to squeal and cp, enjoying the fact that everyone ying with her.

  “Did you see? Those big strong steps!” Adam ruffled the girl’s hair, all the while Lanarot cpped and ughed.

  Adam pced her doulled back. “e to me, Lanababy.”

  Lanarot held out her hands to try and grab him, stepping forwards twice, before Adam scooped her up.

  “Good job! Good job!” Adam tio praise the little girl. “You are the best, Lanababy.” He tio py with her all evening, all the while the other Iyrmen watched.

  Ashmir looked to the others, w how they were responding to Adam wildly praising his little sister. They seem to give him a look which meant that Adam was simply Adam.

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