The Apathetic Mage Loves Cats

Chapter 19: Preparation

"Alright, let's get started."

***

A light knocking sounded on the door, causing me to stir from my seat in front of Caiden's desk. My hands were around a proposal that Caiden was supposed to read. However, I already knew that he had a lot on his plate and that he trusted me, so I was reading it for him, trying to see if it would be worthwhile. Something to note: if you are a noble who wants to show off your "gifted child", don't contact the King and ask for permission for a loan. No one cares if your child thinks he's a mage; he isn't. I promise you.

"What is it?" Caiden called through the door. His face was set in slight irritation, not necessarily at the work that had piled up, but because he was overwhelmed by the number of people he had to meet today. He typically got this way later in the evening when there had been multiple people that had already gone through his office. But unfortunately, there wasn't much we could do about it, other than to push through until it was all over.

The knights opened the door to reveal a small maid, her brown hair falling forward as she kept her head bowed in respect.

"The mages are here for their meeting, Your Highness." Caiden let out a deep sigh, his hand flinging down a paper before coming up to scrub down his face. I glanced at him out of the corner of my eye, knowing that this was the one meeting he was dreading attending. I wasn't particularly sure why, but I knew that if he had it his way, he wouldn't ever have to speak to the mages again.

Lopping his head to the left, he threw his left hand out in a rough gesture. "Show them in." The maid nodded and allowed the knights to shut the door as she went to get the mages.

"Last meeting of the day," I reminded him, standing up and making my way over to his side, my hands finding their way around my back and my heels clicking in place as I waited for Romand and the others to show up. My official position as his bodyguard was by his side, but recently, I found myself only standing there when others were present.

"I know," he murmured, allowing himself another beat to rest before standing up too, the sound of heels clicking on the floor finally pushing himself to put on a professional façade. The maid knocked again lightly.

"Come in." The doors swung open once more, revealing Romand, Lucy, Drac, Akan, and Nene who all bowed before making their way inside. "Please sit. Tess, please bring up some tea and snacks." The little maid bowed again at Caiden before the doors shut behind everyone. "It is wonderful to see you all again," Caiden smiled, looking at Romand. It had been a while since they had been face-to-face. The last time they had spoken was when I was appointed Caiden's bodyguard, so it had been a few months. Usually, I was the one who talked to them whenever they came to ask something, so Caiden had minimal interaction with them.

"It sure has, Your Highness King Caiden," Romand muttered back, making his way over to the chair that I had just gotten up from. "I hope everything has been well with Alan?" Caiden let out a small laugh, his hand waving in response.

"Of course, I couldn't have asked for a better bodyguard." He replied. I watched as the other four made their way into the room and chose to stand behind Romand professionally. We all stood there as Romand, and Caiden made small talk. It was only when the maid brought in the snacks and drinks did the room seem to fall into a more comfortable atmosphere. The other four sat off to the left, on the couch, their hands finding their way around the desserts that the maid had brought in.

"Now, King Caiden," Romand spoke, dragging everyone's gaze towards him as he pulled out a paper from his back pocket. There, the blueprint to the ballroom seemed to open before Romand like magic, no creases or folds to be seen. I guess he took Iban's advice to study the layout. "We have come up with a full-scale system surrounding the ballroom, and even the outside garden, should guests choose to leave the room for a moment..." Romand went on to explain where each mage would be stationed and at what points they would be making their rounds. Of course, I was to be Caiden's only mage bodyguard, allowing the other five to protect the crowds, and possibly, catch the one who could release demons that much quicker. He also suggested that they would be allowed to come a few hours earlier, to put in a new product he had created, that allowed the detection of demons that much quicker.