“Look, is my name, babo,” Jirot said, pointing down onto the page with her tiny chubby finger. “Ji. Woh.”

  “Do you already reise your own name, my Jirot?” Jarot asked, pulling her a little closer with his arm.

  “I know it, I know. Look, is my name, but I am not in the book, it is different,” the girl said.

  “That is right, it is your name, but it is not you,” Jarot firmed, kissing the top of her head, while her brother sucked his thumb, resting up against the old man’s chest, barely able to remain awake. It was tiring work to keep up with his elder sister, so his greatfather couldn’t bme the boy for being so tired. “It is time to nap, Jirot.”

  “No! I am not tired,” the girl replied, before immediately yawning. “No.”

  “Your babo will sleep with you.”

  “Okay!” the girl replied, before hopping onto her feet, falling down almost immediately from the force, while Jarot grabbed her by the back of her clothes, stopping the fall. “I’m okay!”

  “Yes,” the old man replied, refraining from grunting as his back cracked lightly, before setting her free.

  “No,” the girl replied, smirking slightly, before cag and rushing away, before returning back to her babo to grab his hand to lead him to nap.

  Jarot spotted the triplets, who were zing around in the shade, not enjoying how hot noonval was. They were silver scaled half dragons, so they preferred the cold to the heat, though to Jarot, they were each Iyrmen, for they were his greatchildren.

  Murot twitched lightly in his sleep, sug away at his little dummy. The boy had grown so much bigger, and was certainly his brother’s brother, for he was growing as well as Gurot. The boy would crawl almost everywhere, even Jarot was having trouble keeping up with him, but thankfully Konarot assisted the boy.

  ‘My greatchildreoo wise,’ he thought. He thought about how much trouble Jirot was already causing with her swiftness and the chaos she brought with destru, though she was slowly growing out of that phase.

  “Babo,” the girl whispered, grabbing a b which her grandmother had khe spirals of colour sometimes causing the girl to stare at it for minutes. She held it up, allowing her greatfather to settle between them, before c his chest with it, though pulled it slightly off him so she could be covered by the heavy knitted b. “You must be quiet, okay? Babies are sleeping, you ot be loud.” She wagged her fiowards her greatfather seriously.

  “Yes,” Jarot replied, smiling towards the little girl, who then quietened herself by sug her thumb. He let out a soft sigh as he stared at the sky, before hearing the girl quietly shooshing him, her finger pointing at him threateningly, her eyes daring him to act up in front of her. He smiled and kissed her forehead, before brushing little Jarot’s head, the boy already fallen into a deep sleep.

  ‘Jurot, when will you give me such cute greatchildren?’

  While the old man thought about his grandsons, he had no idea that the most eous one was currently in the middle of something so… Adam.

  The silen the air beat against them, while they remained frozen, staring at the se before them. Just like that, a boy had walked up to stab Adam i. The guards had eyed up the boy for a moment, but had been more focused on the heavily armoured warriors nearby, and the half elf who seemed i on causing them bother.

  The members of United Kindom had been mostly focused on watg the se py out, also looking out towards the group of a half dozen or so guards who were there to take away some random child Adam had met earlier in the m that day, a he was so focused on keeping the child safe.

  Adventuring with Adam had made the impossible seem possible, a a child stabbing him wasn’t something any of them expected. Gods causing Adam trouble? That made sense. A child trying to assassinate Adam? That didn’t seem right, but it was exactly because it didn’t seem right, which made it pusible.

  “Aren’t you too young to be an assassin?” Adam asked, reag for the boy’s hand, while the boy twisted the dagger within Adam.

  Health: 82 -> 76

  Athletics Check (Strength)D20 + 8 = 27 (19)

  Adam let out anasp of pain, before he pulled the boy’s hands away, along with the dagger, feeling the heat of blood pooling at his tunibsp;

  Sir Olivia Seahill remained silent, taken aback by the fact the young man had been stabbed by a random dirty ur off the road. ‘Is this some kind of ploy?’

  Adam reached to his side, soothing himself with his magic.

  Lay on Hands: 33 -> 23Health: 76 -> 86

  ‘Eh?’ Adam thought, staring down at the boy. Even though he had been hurt quite bad, through the blue and bck Adam was fairly certain he reised the boy.

  The boy remaiaring at Adam with fury, gritting his teeth, but as the adrenaline ran through him, finally beginning to dissipate, he stared up towards Adam in shobsp;

  Kitool reached down to grab the boy by the scruff of his neck, but Adam raised a hand, causio pause.

  Lay on Hands: 23 -> 13

  Adam pced a hand on the boy, filling him with his divine magic, healing him far beyond what his actual Health would have been. “Kid, what happeo you?”

  The kid felt the divine magic rush through, a warmth he had never felt before. His eyes squinted slightly towards the half elf, before he shook and began to cry. As he did, his mouth opeo reveal his tongue had been cut and cauterised.

  Adam’s eyes fshed wide for a moment with surprise, before he felt another wave of red heat rush through him. His hands became tense, but he pced them over the child’s shoulders. “Hey, kid. Did those guys cut out your tongue?”

  The boy tio shake and cry, and Adam he wetness on the floor, not just from the blood which had fallen with the knife.

  “It’s going to be okay,” Adam said, quietly, patting the boy’s head. “Fred, take the kid a him ed up, a him something to eat.”

  “Okay,” Fred replied, his voice filled with fusion.

  “The boy is also a VIP. Stay with him, and make sure no ohers him.”

  “Of course,” Fred said, suddenly more alert, guiding the young boy away.

  “Cease at once,” Olivia Seahill called out. “You would not be so foolish to harbour criminals in front of me!”

  “Criminals? What did he do?”

  “Do not py games with me, boy,” the woman almost shough kept her voi check. “I saw it with my own eyes.”

  “Whatever you saw, you don’t have to worry about,” Adam replied. “I’m the victim, and I’m saying there was no issue.”

  “You believe yourself to be above the w?”

  “I believe myself to be someone who is fair and just, and there is nothing more fair and just than making sure no ohers these children,” Adam replied. “If you’re wanting to kidnap them out of my security, then you should uand the cost of doing so.”

  “So you have finally spoken your true iions,” the knight said, before motioning a hand to a guard, who stepped forward with a pouch. “Five hundred gold for the boy.”

  They tossed the pouch over to Adam, who caught it, feeling the gems within it. Adam inhaled deeply, before tossing the pouch back towards them. He reached into his shirt, pulling out his amulet, the dark obsidian cool to the toubsp;

  “I work for the enter, who has showered me in magical ons, armour, and gold,” the young half elf said, brushing his hand along the cool obsidian. “It is not gold which is the price for the boy, fold is too cold a price to pay.”

  “Executive Adam,” Vonda called, causing the half elf to pause. The release Adam required was that of blood, Vonda was fairly certain of that, but if he spilled their blood here, theuation would be difficult to resolve. “May I hahis?”

  Adam closed his eyes, nodding his head, barely able to keep himself from exploding. It was the sharp pain at his side which had brought him back to reality.

  Vonda inhaled for a moment. “I have informed the good Sir of the proper protocols in dealing with this matter. Yet, you have spat upon the order of the Great Mother, gold s for a child’s body. I will inform the Mother Priest of this transgression, and you will o ahis disrespect.”

  “We did not offer the order five hundred gold, but the business which wished to trade gold for the child.”

  “We will see if the Mother Priest of Life’s Rose will view it the same way,” Vonda threatened.

  “Your order, though holy and well respected, ot intrude on such matters so lightly. Even if you are a Sister, would you be willing t in the order for a simple matter such as this? I do not believe so.”

  “I am Sister Vonda of Life’s Rose, and though my name does not hold as much respect as that of Sir Olivia Seahill, I still am a member of the Order of Life’s Rose. I have not yet returned bay order to cim my rites are plete, and though I speak to you as Sister Vonda, it is not long from now I will cim the title of Mother Vonda, or perhaps a title as one of the Forty Nine Rays.”

  “You are still a young woma,” Olivia stated. “You are many years from g such titles.”

  “We will see.”

  Adam’s eyes fell to Vonda in surprise, partly because of her words, but also partly because of the look within her eyes, which dared the knight to act up in front of her.

  ‘She is certainly a Priest…’ Sir Seahill thought. It was rare for a Priest to bee a Hope, only the truly most powerful could cim such a title, though it had been geions since, due to the awkward restris oes.

  The sheer fidehin the woman’s eyes caused him to wonder if she really could cim the title of one of the Forty Nine Rays or the Seven Hopes soon.

  How could such a thirue?

  Gods messing with Adam? Makes sense.

  A child trying to assassinate Adam? It is quite Adam.

  Vonda being unhinged? Adam, what have you done?