10th of Fall, 513 AV (Just after sunset)
The Lethaefal looked through his clothing once again, checking to see that his appearance was suitable for a meeting with a highly-placed person in Lhavit. He had opted for the full package - a white silk shirt, comfortable and cooling, leather shoes, a rather spiffing hat and a velvet jacket just for a little extra warmth. It wouldn't go amiss, seeing as the temperature of the surroundings was dropping every now and then as the seasons approached Winter.
It had been difficult attempting to get an interview with Elena. The seneschal of Elena's estate had been less than receptive to Arcturus' request for an interview or an appointment. It had taken him several minutes of verbal sparring to even bring up the topic of possibly having an interview, amidst repeated reminders of Lady Elena's extremely busy schedule. It took him several more to convince him that he was worth her time, seeing as he was apparently new in Lhavit and apparently had little experience in Magecraft. Arcturus had been able to set him right with a few references made to several persons in the city, who gave him positive testimonies about his works, even displaying a few of them. They were all rather old, seeing as he had completed them over half a century ago, but they still functioned well. The entire process had taken a day, and Arcturus was forced to travel all over Lhavit in search of these people.
Arcturus believed that the secretary deliberately did all of that, even though he did show some reverence on account of Arcturus being an Ethaefal.
A missive about his meeting with Elena had been sent to his rooms at the Solar Wind Apartments, but he had forgotten all about it when his flamboyant friend persuaded him to go skinny-dipping in Semele's Cavern. Well, a better word would be 'forced' - a favour was owed, and Arcturus had to do it. A grimace appeared on his face for a few moments before he banished it.
Yes, he wanted to see my naked body. After this long, he's still attracted to me? Even when I was openly with Spica back then, he still tried flirting with me. And Spica just had to encourage him. I don't know why I still consider him as a friend. He hasn't changed one bit - but he does appear to have developed a marked preference for shades of purple and yellow.
The end result was that Arcturus was still feeling slightly flustered, having rushed back home to take a shower and change into his best set of clothes, before running to Elena's Studio of Enchantment.
He looked over himself once more. After he concluded that there was nothing more to be done for his appearance, he assumed a confident posture and walked into the entrance hall of the estate. There, he stood still and stared blankly at the few people around him, unsure of what to do next.
"Mister Arcturus? This way, please. Lady Elena is awaiting you."
Oh, thank goodness for the ever-helpful butler. Or manservant. Whatever it is.
He noted Elena's tendency to have attractive males and females as employees in her estate. Perhaps it was just wishful thinking, but he hoped that she would not be as immodest as Altrum. Unfortunately, he had heard stories, rumors of what went on in her grounds.
Perhaps she'll be mellowed out after a tryst or two. And receptive to my request. I still have to find a way to get some publicity, to obtain some commissions for me in order to start earning mizas - Kina. My old customers are mostly dead, with the exception of a few Ethaefal, and I doubt any of them would want any items. No doubt there's more magesmiths looking for commissions. Breaking into this market will be difficult. Perhaps Elena could help me with that. Hopefully, in two or three seasons, I'll have enough Kina to start working on personal projects, though that wouldn't leave me much time to work on my projects. Thankfully, I have the ability to age things by one day - speeding up any works I have. The Djed pathways will develop much faster than when I would leave it as it is overnight to let the pathways mature.
Deep in his thoughts, he nearly missed the page-boy's - or was it page-man? - gesture to a closed door on their right. Thanking the page-boy, Arcturus stared at the door, feeling rather trepidatious. Deciding that promptness was the watchword of the day, he knocked on the door twice, receiving a reply spoken in a mellifluous voice almost immediately.
"Do enter."
He shivered at the seductive tone. Did she really speak like that to everyone? It would make things more troublesome. Not to mention distracting. It had been years since he had engaged in carnal relations, and he was still sensitive to such matters after meeting Altrum. Since Spica went missing, he had became more of an abstemious person. Deciding to be cautious, he concentrated for a bit, before activating his Auristic sight.
He opened the door, and was greeted with a sybaritic sight. The room was no doubt meant to be a classroom of some sort, judging by the boards on which partially legible written words and faint drawn symbols could still be made out. However, the rest of the room was simply decadent in nature. Brocaded chairs were neatly placed around a marble table. The entire floor was covered in carpets, carpets with an unnaturally soft feel to them. And to complete the image of immense luxury, the centerpiece, the pièce de résistance, was a large divan, richly decorated and with several cushions placed on it. There, Elena Lariat reclined in an almost indecent robe of gold and silver, electrum-like, providing a teasing view of her assets. Her aura was complex, with shades of flesh-pink and gold leaf dancing everywhere around her. Perhaps the most curious feature about her aura was that, other than the information about her physical attributes now leaking slowly into Arcturus' mind, the major emotion radiating from her was extraordinarily easy to detect. Passion. Passion for the carnal arts, passion for beautiful bodies, their textures, their softness or hardness.
Arcturus deactivated Auristics as the feeling washed over him, setting him on edge and it made his entire body tingle to his extremities.
Oh no. This does not look good. Where can I run to?
Perhaps it was his tensed body, or his eyes darting about everywhere, looking for a means of egress from this arousing experience, but Elena smiled charmingly, gesturing for him to come closer.
"You must be Arcturus. My, you do look rather... interesting. Come, have a seat here."
She patted one of the cushions located close to here. He remained obtuse for a few seconds before obeying her silently, attempting and failing to ignore her grey eyes, which held a slightly rapacious feel to it.
"Yes, I am."
"You look flustered. Perhaps you'd like to tell me why?"
Her voice was pleasing to the ear, making Arcturus feel more relaxed. He leaned on another cushion as he answered her.
"Well, I had to rush from my house in order to be on time here. I was... preoccupied with a friend of mine."
She offered him a loukomi covered with a white powder from a silver platter, carved with images of flowers and birds. He took it and chewed on it, tasting the sinfully sweet powder, observing that it was made of powdered sugar and something else he couldn't identify. The wide array of flavours the sweet had made him wonder if she ate something like this everyday.
"Oh? And what were you doing with your friend?"
He couldn't help it; he blurted it out. Her voice was simply too persuasive to ignore.
"I went skinny-dipping in Semele's Cavern."
He blushed deeply, eyes focusing on the platter as she gave a chuckle.
"No need to tell me what came next, dearie."
The Lethaefal looked through his clothing once again, checking to see that his appearance was suitable for a meeting with a highly-placed person in Lhavit. He had opted for the full package - a white silk shirt, comfortable and cooling, leather shoes, a rather spiffing hat and a velvet jacket just for a little extra warmth. It wouldn't go amiss, seeing as the temperature of the surroundings was dropping every now and then as the seasons approached Winter.
It had been difficult attempting to get an interview with Elena. The seneschal of Elena's estate had been less than receptive to Arcturus' request for an interview or an appointment. It had taken him several minutes of verbal sparring to even bring up the topic of possibly having an interview, amidst repeated reminders of Lady Elena's extremely busy schedule. It took him several more to convince him that he was worth her time, seeing as he was apparently new in Lhavit and apparently had little experience in Magecraft. Arcturus had been able to set him right with a few references made to several persons in the city, who gave him positive testimonies about his works, even displaying a few of them. They were all rather old, seeing as he had completed them over half a century ago, but they still functioned well. The entire process had taken a day, and Arcturus was forced to travel all over Lhavit in search of these people.
Arcturus believed that the secretary deliberately did all of that, even though he did show some reverence on account of Arcturus being an Ethaefal.
A missive about his meeting with Elena had been sent to his rooms at the Solar Wind Apartments, but he had forgotten all about it when his flamboyant friend persuaded him to go skinny-dipping in Semele's Cavern. Well, a better word would be 'forced' - a favour was owed, and Arcturus had to do it. A grimace appeared on his face for a few moments before he banished it.
Yes, he wanted to see my naked body. After this long, he's still attracted to me? Even when I was openly with Spica back then, he still tried flirting with me. And Spica just had to encourage him. I don't know why I still consider him as a friend. He hasn't changed one bit - but he does appear to have developed a marked preference for shades of purple and yellow.
The end result was that Arcturus was still feeling slightly flustered, having rushed back home to take a shower and change into his best set of clothes, before running to Elena's Studio of Enchantment.
He looked over himself once more. After he concluded that there was nothing more to be done for his appearance, he assumed a confident posture and walked into the entrance hall of the estate. There, he stood still and stared blankly at the few people around him, unsure of what to do next.
"Mister Arcturus? This way, please. Lady Elena is awaiting you."
Oh, thank goodness for the ever-helpful butler. Or manservant. Whatever it is.
He noted Elena's tendency to have attractive males and females as employees in her estate. Perhaps it was just wishful thinking, but he hoped that she would not be as immodest as Altrum. Unfortunately, he had heard stories, rumors of what went on in her grounds.
Perhaps she'll be mellowed out after a tryst or two. And receptive to my request. I still have to find a way to get some publicity, to obtain some commissions for me in order to start earning mizas - Kina. My old customers are mostly dead, with the exception of a few Ethaefal, and I doubt any of them would want any items. No doubt there's more magesmiths looking for commissions. Breaking into this market will be difficult. Perhaps Elena could help me with that. Hopefully, in two or three seasons, I'll have enough Kina to start working on personal projects, though that wouldn't leave me much time to work on my projects. Thankfully, I have the ability to age things by one day - speeding up any works I have. The Djed pathways will develop much faster than when I would leave it as it is overnight to let the pathways mature.
Deep in his thoughts, he nearly missed the page-boy's - or was it page-man? - gesture to a closed door on their right. Thanking the page-boy, Arcturus stared at the door, feeling rather trepidatious. Deciding that promptness was the watchword of the day, he knocked on the door twice, receiving a reply spoken in a mellifluous voice almost immediately.
"Do enter."
He shivered at the seductive tone. Did she really speak like that to everyone? It would make things more troublesome. Not to mention distracting. It had been years since he had engaged in carnal relations, and he was still sensitive to such matters after meeting Altrum. Since Spica went missing, he had became more of an abstemious person. Deciding to be cautious, he concentrated for a bit, before activating his Auristic sight.
He opened the door, and was greeted with a sybaritic sight. The room was no doubt meant to be a classroom of some sort, judging by the boards on which partially legible written words and faint drawn symbols could still be made out. However, the rest of the room was simply decadent in nature. Brocaded chairs were neatly placed around a marble table. The entire floor was covered in carpets, carpets with an unnaturally soft feel to them. And to complete the image of immense luxury, the centerpiece, the pièce de résistance, was a large divan, richly decorated and with several cushions placed on it. There, Elena Lariat reclined in an almost indecent robe of gold and silver, electrum-like, providing a teasing view of her assets. Her aura was complex, with shades of flesh-pink and gold leaf dancing everywhere around her. Perhaps the most curious feature about her aura was that, other than the information about her physical attributes now leaking slowly into Arcturus' mind, the major emotion radiating from her was extraordinarily easy to detect. Passion. Passion for the carnal arts, passion for beautiful bodies, their textures, their softness or hardness.
Arcturus deactivated Auristics as the feeling washed over him, setting him on edge and it made his entire body tingle to his extremities.
Oh no. This does not look good. Where can I run to?
Perhaps it was his tensed body, or his eyes darting about everywhere, looking for a means of egress from this arousing experience, but Elena smiled charmingly, gesturing for him to come closer.
"You must be Arcturus. My, you do look rather... interesting. Come, have a seat here."
She patted one of the cushions located close to here. He remained obtuse for a few seconds before obeying her silently, attempting and failing to ignore her grey eyes, which held a slightly rapacious feel to it.
"Yes, I am."
"You look flustered. Perhaps you'd like to tell me why?"
Her voice was pleasing to the ear, making Arcturus feel more relaxed. He leaned on another cushion as he answered her.
"Well, I had to rush from my house in order to be on time here. I was... preoccupied with a friend of mine."
She offered him a loukomi covered with a white powder from a silver platter, carved with images of flowers and birds. He took it and chewed on it, tasting the sinfully sweet powder, observing that it was made of powdered sugar and something else he couldn't identify. The wide array of flavours the sweet had made him wonder if she ate something like this everyday.
"Oh? And what were you doing with your friend?"
He couldn't help it; he blurted it out. Her voice was simply too persuasive to ignore.
"I went skinny-dipping in Semele's Cavern."
He blushed deeply, eyes focusing on the platter as she gave a chuckle.
"No need to tell me what came next, dearie."