Chapter 16: A New Start
The group arrived at the Hilltop Castle as the sun started to near its peak. The distance initially did not seem as long. However, to get to the dirt road, the group had to traverse dense forests, which slowed them down considerably.
The initial road seemed somewhat familiar to Otto, as he had used the same route to make his way towards the city with his father. However at the last crossing, instead of going straight, Mike, who was leading the group, turned towards the left entering a different place. One which Otto was not familiar with.
During their journey, Otto got more familiar with Kyle. His mother died in childbirth, so he does not remember her. As for his father, Kyle mentioned that he was a good person. Even the surrounding people loved him. He was sure that even Otto would like him if they met. Furthermore, he also had an uncle.
Outside of this all, Kyle has several tutors teaching him various subjects such as, reading, writing and sword fighting. He has tried magic several times with the help of the court magician, however, for some reason, he was not able to activate his essence yet. But the court magician believed that he was getting close to achieving this.
Their conversation continued about various other subjects as they slowly exited a forested area. As the land started to clear up, a sizable castle could be seen located on top of a large hill. Surrounding the walls of the castle, there were numerous fields, with people working on them.
As the group was passing by, several of the fieldworkers stopped what they were doing and kindly waved at them. The tiredness of working on the field was hidden behind a kind smile. Some even greeted, as they waved their hand towards the group who passed by, "Welcome back, young master!"
Waving his hand back to the workers, Kyle thanked them from a distance. With that, the group continued they way towards the castle door. As they approached, shouts came from on top of the walls, "Open up the gates! The young lord is approaching!"
Climbing up the hill where the castle was location, they slowly approached the wall of defending the castle. The portcullis blocked their way, there was only a small opening, able to fit a single person at a time.
Getting closer, an order orders were given. With a heavy sound, the metal portcullis started to rise up, making way for the group to enter. Passing through the gatehouse, the portcullis started to go down again. There was still a gap left for single persons to pass through, however, as they were a larger group, they would not be able to fit through the single person gap.
Entering the bailey of the castle, the sound of busy working people were heard in the location. The ringing of metal echoed from the blacksmith as black smoke billowed from the chimney. The neighing of the horses that were at the stables was surpassed by the sound of metals. However, occasionally some could be heard.
Looking with wide eyes, Otto was surprised to see so many things hidden in this location. Instead of stopping at the stable, they continued towards the inner bialy, where the keep was located.
The inner bialy housed the soldiers who were loyal to the Jaeger family. There were several groups that formed. Some were training with a sword, some with the bow and some with a spear. The ringing of swords echoed throughout the bailey, as the soldiers were sparring with each other. Shouts and orders were given to the soldiers, to improve their stance and techniques.
Otto felt overwhelmed about the whole ordeal as he did not expect something as grand like this. There was a large number of people situated here. 'Are these men all below Kyle?' he wondered. His respect towards him started to increase at that moment.
Arriving at the door of the keep, the horses came to a halt. Several of the guards, who were posted out there, rushed over to the horses, helping the Knights to dismount of their horses. Not knowing what to do, Otto and Mira were the only one sitting on the horse waiting for someone to help them. Even the guard that was holding the horse still started to get inpatient from them not moving.
"Here, let me help you two." Mike said as he was walking towards them. Noticing the face of the guard he added, "They are not familiar with horseback riding." Looking back towards Otto and Mira he added on, "It is even a wonder that you guys did not fall off." There was a slight praise in his voice.
"It is all thanks to sir." Otto replied with a humble voice, as he slowly bowed towards him.
Slightly laughing, Mike picked first Mira, and put her on the ground, before helping Otto dismount.
The moment his feet touched the ground, Kyle rushed over towards Otto, "So, this is where I live. Do you like it? It looks awesome right?"
Nodding, Otto did not know how to reply. It was indeed a large location, something that he did not expect.
"If you want, we can explore now."
Before Otto was able to reply, Mike spoke up, "You still have to report back to your father, young master. I am sure that he is worried about you. Moreover, don't you have to introduce your new friends to him?"
"Ah, that's right! We should meet father!" With a turn towards the door, Kyle started to head towards the keep. Quickly turning around, he beckoned to Otto and Mira, "Follow me!" With that, he disappeared behind the doors.
Holding the hand of Mira, Otto wanted to quickly follow behind Kyle. The grip that he felt from Mira tightened ever since they had entered the castle domain. She was unsure and scared of the whole ordeal. However, there was also a look of curiosity in her eyes. Not wanting to leave her alone, Otto made sure to wait for Mira before moving out.
Entering the stone keep, the inside was covered with stone. From time to time, impressive looking drawings could be seen hanging on the walls. Kyle started to explain the paintings as they moved on, "This person here is my grandfather. She is m mother. And…"
The explanation continued until they arrived before a door. Close behind them, Mike and a handful his men were following them. None of them were in any rush, as they enjoyed seeing that the children started to ease up.
"Young master! Welcome back!" the guards in front of the door said as they lightly saluted him.
"Is father in?"
"Yes, but he is a bi…"
Kyle did not wait for the guard to finish his answer and rushed towards the door and pushed it open.
"Young master! No… No wa…" The guard tried to stop him, but it was already too late.
"Father! I am back!" Kyle said cheerfully as he entered into the study.
"Kyle… What are you doing here?" The look on Theodor's face was both one of relief as well as shock. He did not expect that Kyle would barge in, in such a way. Looking over to the guards, he noticed that even they had a shocked face, as they also did not expect what was happening.
Looking inside, Otto saw that there was a middle-aged man standing behind a fancy table. From the looks of it, he jumped up, the moment that Kyle interrupted him when he entered the room. On the other side of the table, a long-haired female was sitting. Her brown locks, curling down all the way to her back. She had a beautiful naval blue dress.
Looking over at the boy that entered, she gave out a small chuckle. As she stood up, she made a polite curtsy. "I think that I will be going Viscount Jaeger. I hope to meet you soon again." She spoke in a polite and soft voice. Looking over at Kyle she added with a nice smile, "I am glad that you're alright, little Kyle. I was scared that something might have happened to you." Her voice started to sadden when she was speaking those words.
Ignoring what the female said, Kyle, entered deeper into the room, and looked directly at his father. "What is she doing here?" There was no courtesy at all in his voice. Just a direct question.
"I am sorry for my sons' behavior Baroness Hayes." Walking over towards her, he continued. I am glad for your offer. I hope to see you again." The final words were spoken as he stood in front of the Baroness. Right after speaking those words, he picked up her hand and leaned down to give a gentle kiss on her hand.
With a giggle, she turned around and walked towards the door. As she was passing by Otto and Mira, she gave a quick glance, before continuing her way towards the door.
The moment she left, Kyle spoke up again, "Why was she here?" There was an annoyance hidden in his voice.
"Baroness Hayes heard that you did not return last night and got worried. She offered to help out by sending a search party." The voice was rather annoying. Calming down a bit, he started to question Kyle, "Why were you late anyway. The messenger told that you were supposed to arrive yesterday."
Looking at his feet, Kyle slowly started to explain the story. He was a bit embarrassed about the whole situation. "When we were about to return, I lost control over my horse. It darted off deeper into the forest. Before long, I arrived at a wolves nest."
Theodor let out a noticeable gasp. Directly walking over to Kyle, he stooped down, inspecting the child.
Kyle ignored this and continued his story. He told about that both he and the horse got attacked by the wolves. He managed to escape for a bit, but his horse got taken down. Baking up against a tree he started to shout for help. "… as I shouted for help, the wolves had flanked me. There was no way to escape. However, before the wolves were able to attack, one of them dropped dead, shot by an arrow."
Looking over at Otto, Kyle beckoned him to enter. "I was saved by him. He was the one that shot the arrow." He said as he was pointing towards Otto, who slowly and vigilantly entered the room.
"So, the life of my son was saved by you? Can you do me the honor and tell me your name?" Theodor was happy to hear that nothing had happened to his son. He was grateful to Otto for managing to keep him away from harm's way.
"Otto." Otto said in a soft voice.
"And who might this girl beside you be?"
Mira darted slightly behind Otto as Theodor looked straight at her.
"And who might this cute little girl be?" There was a kind smile on his face, clearly trying to persuade Mira that he was no treat.
Otto again replied with an indifferent voice, "She is Mira."
"Oh, nice to meet you! I am Theodor Jaeger. The father of Kyle." Standing up straight again, he walked over to his seat. Before sitting down, he pointed to the children to take a seat.
"So what brings you two actually here?"
This time Kyle replied. "I asked Otto to join our household."
"What about his parents, I know that working for a noble is a good position, however, what did they say?"
Unsure how to reply, Kyle, looked over at Otto, who was looking at his hands with saddened eyes. With a soft, whispering like voice he replied, "Otto lost his parents to a bandit attack."
"Oh… I am sorry to hear that." The cheerful expression of Theodor turned solemn, as he looked over at Mira. "What about the girl? Are her parents also…?"
"No, her parents are alive. Otto insisted on taking her with him, saying that she is his only family member."
Instead of replying Otto nodded.
"What about her parents?"
"Well… about that…" This time it was Mike who spoke up. "We kidnapped the girl." There was a mixed smile on his face.
"You did what? Kidnap the poor girl?"
"Well, not exactly, she wanted to come with us. It's just that her parents aren't aware of the whole ordeal."
A deep and heavy sigh came from Theodor. He started to rub his forehead, thinking about the problems that they just had caused him. Shaking his head he continued, "I think that you guys are tired. So for now, rest up a bit. We will talk later." Speaking those words, Theodor called over a guard and spoke up, "Ready a room for our guests to stay."
With that, he signaled to the children to leave, as he had to talk with Mike about the situation.
Leaving the room, Otto did not let loose of Mira's hand, as they followed the guard.
…
CREATORS' THOUGHTS 
gsemre
gsemre This is a rerelease of the chapter.
This is because I forgot to add this into a new volume.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone