Chapter 168: 168: House building II
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"You will take a cart," Elena repeated.
Sekht did not argue again. He had already lost the breakfast war. He was not going to lose the transportation war too.
"Elena," Sekht said instead, shifting to the question that mattered. "Where is Mira now?"
"Mira," Elena replied instantly. "She has been sitting with a notebook as if the notebook owes her money."
Sekht nodded. That sounded like Mira.
"And the twins," Sekht asked.
Elena continued, "They have asked for training."
Sekht’s eyes narrowed slightly. "Training," he repeated.
Elena nodded. "They asked what weapon training Dawn House provides," she said. "I told them we provide broom training if they touch the wrong servants."
Sekht blinked once then laughed.
Elena’s face did not change. She had said it completely seriously.
Sekht decided not to test whether Elena had actually threatened them with a broom. He suspected she had.
"Good," Sekht said.
He turned toward the guest wing.
Mira was easy to find. She was exactly where Elena described: sitting at a small desk, posture straight, notebook open, ink stains faint on her fingers like proof she worked more than she rested.
When Sekht entered, Mira rose imdiately and bowed, not deeply like a slave, but correctly like soone honoring the contract’s hierarchy.
"Young master," Mira said.
Sekht’s eyes flicked to the notebook. "You wake early," he said.
Mira’s mouth tightened slightly, almost a smile. "If soone sells ten years of service, sleeping late would be dishonest," she replied.
Sekht studied her for a mont. He liked that answer. It was not flattering. It was practical.
"You are coming with ," Sekht said. "We will buy materials."
Mira nodded imdiately. "Yes," she replied. "What kind of materials?"
Sekht handed her Elena’s list.
Mira scanned it quickly, eyes moving fast, absorbing every line as if morizing the shape of the words.
"You are building," Mira said, not as a question.
"I am organizing," Sekht corrected.
Mira accepted that without argunt. "Understood," she replied.
Sekht turned and walked back toward the main hall. Mira followed with disciplined steps, not too close, not too far.
Before leaving, Sekht paused near the inner storage room, the one that servants rarely entered without permission.
Mira stopped behind him, waiting.
Sekht opened the door, stepped inside, and made sure no one else was present.
Then he spoke inside his mind.
Open void land.
The tear appeared in the air, small and controlled. Darkness opened like a mouth that belonged only to him.
Auri stepped out imdiately.
She was wrapped in a simple cloak, hood up, wings hidden. She moved with careful silence, eyes scanning the room. She looked like a shadow trying to pretend it was human.
Mira stiffened behind Sekht.
Her eyes widened slightly, not in fear, but in surprise.
She had expected servants.
She had expected guards.
She had not expected a cloaked girl to appear out of air as if reality itself owed Sekht favors.
Sekht’s voice stayed calm.
"Let
introduce her properly. This is Auri," he said. "She is my personal assistant and will assist with shopping."
Mira’s gaze flicked to Sekht’s face, trying to asure whether she was allowed to ask questions.
Sekht did not invite questions.
Mira did not ask.
She bowed toward Auri instead, careful.
"Auri," Mira said politely.
Auri returned a small bow, controlled. "Mira," she replied, voice quiet.
Sekht watched both of them. Mira did not panic. Auri did not show hostility. That was enough for now.
"We go," Sekht said.
They left through the side gate of Dawn House, avoiding unnecessary eyes at the main entrance. Two servants followed with a cart and a mule, both servants trained by Elena to pretend nothing unusual ever happened.
Slik City was already alive.
The streets were crowded. rchants shouted. Beastkin argued with human custors. Soone tried to sell dried fish with the confidence of a man selling treasure. Sowhere nearby, a child scread for no reason other than being a child.
Auri kept her hood up and walked quietly beside Sekht, staying on the side opposite most foot traffic. Mira walked slightly behind Sekht, notebook tucked under her arm like a weapon.
They moved toward the building market district.
This part of the city slled like wood dust, stone powder, and money. Stacks of timber lined alleyways. Nails were sold by weight. Ropes hung like snakes. Cloth rchants displayed thick canvas and waterproof tarps. Stone masons sat like kings behind piles of cut blocks.
Sekht did not enjoy shopping.
Lily made shopping feel like war with perfu.
This was different. This was a building.
This was the foundation.
Mira beca useful imdiately.
She spoke to the rchants with polite firmness, negotiated prices down by pointing out flaws in grain and minor cracks in stone, and kept track of every purchase without needing to ask Sekht twice.
Auri watched with quiet interest.
At one point, a rchant tried to overcharge by doubling the price of nails.
Mira simply looked at him and said, "If you cannot count, I can hire a child to count for you."
The rchant sputtered.
Sekht almost smiled again.
Auri’s eyes narrowed slightly, like she approved.
They bought timber beams, planks, nails, rope, canvas, basic furniture pieces that could be assembled later, a small iron stove for cooking, and jars for storing supplies. Sekht paid without hesitation, because bargaining over every coin was how you exposed weakness. He wanted this done efficiently.
They loaded the cart.
Then they hired additional porters, because Elena’s list had not been modest. Elena did not believe in half asures. Elena believed in building sothing that could survive a siege.
When everything was ready, they returned toward Dawn House.
On the way back, Auri finally spoke quietly, her voice barely audible under the city noise.
"Master," she said, "you will let
take these inside."
"Yes," Sekht replied.
Auri nodded, and for the first ti since leaving the void land, her posture eased slightly. She looked almost... excited.
It was not childish excitent.
It was the excitent of soone who had been trapped in empty darkness and was finally being allowed to shape it into sothing that felt like living.
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