The first rays of daread across the nd, even daring to peek through to North Aldnd, where the jagged mountains were said to be as hardy as their people. The frost endured, for the frost of the North rejects even noonval’s rays, so the onfolk would state.

  The chill seeped through the fort and into Adam’s bones, who sat upright immediately, blinking rapidly. His bones cracked and ached as he hoisted himself up onto his feet, reag over to his purple armour, made of the Iyr’s puthral, a pale imitation of the elf’s mithril, though a pale imitation of mithril was still greater than most steel. As he lifted his breastpte up, the half elf paused.

  “Jurot?”

  The Iyrman, tall, lean, handsome, with dark hair which fell down to his shoulders, had been focused upon the ceiling, gowards his brother with his dark, knowing, eyes. “Adam.”

  “Happy birthday.”

  “Happy birthday.”

  Adam dropped his breastpte, reag up to his obsidian amulet, marked with the symbol of Baktu, Lord Sozain. “Wao send word to Pam?”

  “No.”

  “You sure?”

  “Yes.”

  “Alright.”

  Mana: 25 -> 22Spell: Sending

  “Happy birthday, Vonda. Please tell Konarot,” Adam began, feeling the magic course through his veins, and escape through his lips. A thought passed through his mind, but he tinued, “Kirot, and Karot, happy birthday too, and send everyone my love. Do you want anything from North Amber? I-”

  Adam felt the spell fade from his lips, and he flushed red awkwardly. ‘I should have at least said I love you to her.’

  “Happy birthday, darling. I will. I hope you will return home safely soon. Should we expect you in dawnval or noonval? I love you too.”

  Adam’s lips twitched into a smile. ‘Good job, Konababy. I knew you’d be able to do it.’ “Jurot, should I tell Vonda if we’re returning in dawnval or noonval?”

  Jurot blinked.

  “Did I not tell you?”

  “No?”

  “Oh. I wrote a letter before I left.”

  “You did not speak of it.”

  “Oh. I thought I did. My bad.” Adam furrowed his brows. ‘I guess we did leave in a rush?’ “Anyway, it’s not that, well, it is important, but isn’t there something more important? Should I also send word to my adorable little babies? I told Vonda, but shouldn’t their father also send them gratutions too?”

  “They are too young.”

  “Right, they’re too young,” Adam agreed.

  Jurot could hear it within his brother’s voice. It was that kind of tohe tone which implied he would refuse ever aowledging his children growing up. However, Jurot couldn’t speak up, since Adam was only flirting with being ge, so he allowed his brother his moment.

  The pair quickly doheir gear, Adam in his puthral, Jurot in his thick clothing, and made their way out of their cold stone room. A river of warriors streamed out towards the courtyard of the outpost, many injured, all eager to leave. Adam followed Jurot, his eyes darting around to see if he couldn’t find any familiar faces among them, trying to find Eddard.

  “You know…” Lucy said as the pair approached, pulling away from her wolf. “I thought we’d do more during the Twilight Month since everyone was so worried.”

  “Lucy, st to tempt things like that,” Adam said. ‘Especially since you’re you, you ’t be saying things like that.’

  “You got to fight iour,” the demon replied, frowning. “I thought the North would allow me to act up a little.” She could feel it even now, the gres from the various Orders around them. Fortunately for her, she stood beside a particur pair of Iyrmen, from Jaygak, who was red of skin and horned like her, though tattooed with the symbols of her family, and then there was Kitool, an Iyrman too, though she looked like Jurot, that was to say, not red of skin, and hornless. Humans, as fools would say.

  “We should leave the fort,” Jaygak said, gng aside towards the various figures of the Orders, each keeping a keen eye upon the group, specifically the pair of horned ones within their group. “We shouldn’t keep the Marshal waiting.”

  “Marshal?” Adam asked, his mind going to Lord Benjamin, before recalling the figure who had apahem all this way. “ht. Won’t they be ahat we’re leaving like this?”

  “We haven’t been asked to remain so we leave,” Jaygak said. “The Orders will remain to watch over the bourers, but if we help out, there will be less work for the workers, who will wish to fill their pouches of silver.”

  “Should we go greet our friends before leaving?” Adam asked. “Plus, we should probably greet the Princess before we leave.”

  “Adam?”

  “Yeah?”

  “Are you okay?” Jaygak asked, frowning slightly.

  “I’m fine?”

  “Are you sure?”

  “Yeah?”

  “You don’t souain.”

  “I’m fine.”

  “If you’re not being an idiot then something must be wrong.”

  “Jaygak, do you wao beat you up ag-,”

  “Kavgak,” Jaygak began causing Adam to pause, the half elf suddenly standing at attention, “must miss me so much, so we should return back quickly.”

  Adam looked towards Jurot for support, but he and Kitool exged gnces, sighing. “You think just because-,”

  “Maygak,” Jaygak said, cutting Adam off.

  “Alright, alright!” Adam huffed, feeling the o beat her rise. ‘Just you wait until Jirot hears…’ Adam’s thought fell away, since she adored her aunt so much. ‘I’ll tell Ja-, Konarot, you o bully your aunt for me, okay?’

  The Princess stood proudly to one side, seeing how easily the Iyrma with the half elf. Sir Wick stood like a statue beside her, adorned in his full pte, carrying a bde at his side. There were times she had wished to step forward, but due to the pair ag like such utter fools, she remained he wall. Her heart sighed. ‘Iyrmen.’

  “Oh, Princess Adda,” Adam called out as the six made their way to leave, only to find the Princess he entrance, a well practised, tal meeting.

  “Adam,” the Princess replied, smiling politely. Her grey eyes took in the half elf’s features for a long moment, her bck hair stig to her cool skin, peeking from under her thick fur hat. “Are you pnning to leave North Amber soon?”

  “Pretty soon, yeah.”

  “I am certain the Grand Duchess will wish to meet with you before you leave.”

  ‘Ah, right.’ Adam blinked. “Are you saying we should go meet her now?”

  “It would be best to meet her now,” the Princess firmed.

  ‘I don’t want to shirk the Grand Duchess, but…’ “Princess Adda?”

  “Yes?”

  “I hope you don’t take this the wrong way, but right now, all I want to do is have a bath,” the half elf said with such earness, the Princess blinked with fusion.

  “What Adam is trying to say, is that we would like to look presentable before we meet the Grand Duchess,” Jaygak replied. “If it is acceptable, we meet at noon.”

  “I will inform the Grand Duchess,” Adda replied, still partly taken aback by the half elf. ‘I thought he was joking about the baths.’

  The group returo the inn, the warm air rushing towards them, melting the frost of the Twilight Month from their hearts. After such a Twilight, the inn was near empty, though at the ready for the influx of warriors, and farmers, which would soourn.

  Jane g the group as they returned, raising her brows towards them, nodding her head, while the Marshal of East Port sipped his milk, also nodding towards the group.

  “How was it?” Marshal Bck asked, the figure wearing his , though not the rest of his full pte. The sword at his side remained ed in a trusty scarf, now blue, having procured a new scarf to his bde within.

  “It was fine,” Adam replied, though the pair could see the obvious disappoi upon Lucy’s face.

  “I heard it was going to be difficult, but they didn’t ask me for assistance,” Marshal Bck said, sipping his milk. ‘That’s the North for you.’

  “They did have a bunch of Vianders, the Grave Swords, us, obviously, and even Sir Wick,” Adam said.

  ‘It makes sense for Sir Wick to have gone sihe Princess was there,’ the Marshal thought. “Anything iing?”

  “Just a bone dragon.”

  ‘Just a bone dragon?’

  “Anyway, did you enjoy kig it on our dime?” Adam asked, fshing a smile towards Jane.

  “What?”

  “Oh, sorry, I meant… did you enjoy your time here?”

  “Yes?”

  “Well, we’ll be leaving soon, so did you want to e with us to the business?”

  “You’ve treated me right so far, so I’d like to at least visit before I give you a proper answer.”

  “Sure, sure,” Adam replied, before yawning. “Alright, I o go wake up in a bath, then we’ve got a meeting with the-,”

  “Adam,” Jurot said, stopping his brother from saying more, su ability almost as refined as his ability to sughter beasts.

  “What?” Adam replied, oblivious to how close he had e to causing trouble, for he was his daughter’s father.

  “We should go bathe.”

  “That’s more like it!”

  Jaygak exged a look with Kitool, the pair uanding they still had so much more work to do to make sure Adam didn’t get himself killed. ‘You ’t just casually mention that the Grand Duchess wants to speak with you.’

  The Grand Duchess readied her tea to receive her guests, while Sir Grover ed his gve, upon the Grand Duchess’ instru. The old man stared longingly at the gve he had used for all these decades, dragging a finger along the ft of the bde. His eyes darted to the side as the steps echoed within the manor.

  “Did he request to bathe before meetihe Grand Duchess asked.

  “… Yes,” Princess Adda replied, staring at the old woman, who anded more respect thahe King of Aldnd.

  “He truly is a fool,” the Grand Duchess said, ing the cups. “So?”

  “He would not wish to marry me.”

  “She may not be a Princess, but she is a Ray,” the old woman said, cheg the biscuits she had pced within the oven, moving with a careful swiftness, ohat was tempered by time. “The Iyr has ed him, the Order of Life’s Rose has mao pce a bde within his bed, all we do is offer him a rose.”

  ‘Even this rose has a thrand Duchess.’

  “Did you think I meant you?” the Grand Duchess asked, not even turning back to judge the young woman’s face. “Not a rose, but honey.”

  “Honey?”

  “What does he want?”

  “He wants to impress his daughter.”

  “Which daughter?”

  “Jirot.”

  “What did you learn about her?”

  Princess Adda thought about how easily Adam gave up almost everything about his children to her, to the point she was uain that anything he said was true. Yet, the Iyrmen had firmed his words, so she could only believe his words to be true. “She likes to tease him.”

  “What else did you learn?”

  “She’s smart for her age, and her brother was named after the Mad Dog.”

  “I’m sure you’ve learnt more, but everything he has told you, he has already said to me. Even if he is a fool, he has informed me of greater details than he would have revealed to you.”

  ‘Then why did you seo-,’

  “That boy and his panions are more dangerous than you have realised,” the Grand Duchess said, turning to face the Princess, her grey eyes full of a fieress that the Princess hadn’t seen in some time. “The Iyrmen are difficult to deal with, and though he is ed by the Iyr, it is a fortuhat he is not an Iyrman. I will teach you how to deal with him.”

  While the Grand Duchess dealt with how to deal with the brat, that brat enjoyed his time withihs, unaware of all the bdes wishing to point his way, for though many bdes could point his way, what was a greater shield than being Jurot’s brother?

  EDIT: After rereading the first half of the story, I retract what I wrote. It's got some det a, I just fot the insanity.

  I'm going to warn you now, this year does not have a lot of a in the beginning, but is extremely, and I mearemely, important for the story. It's probably going to be around 100 chapters or so, so if you want to wait for it to have about 40 chapters before you start, that's probably a good idea. If you want to know why, well, Chapter 40 is out on Patreon!

  This year is definitely focused oionships between characters, and Adam trying to grow up. It's definitely my favourite year thus far, for one reason or another.

  Also about the new aesthetics for the year, I just like the colour bination of bd red.