Joan, the Red Dragon Acolyte, tapped the table to get Karl's attention. "We should likely head back to the Cathedral for the night. Is Rae keeping Sybil for the evening?"
[Nope, she can sleep tonight, we will train in the sun.]
"You can all rest for the evening. We will work on training tomorrow. It will be a little later in the morning, so if you finish everything, you can come here looking for us." Karl informed her, and the young Priestess began to herd her teammates toward the door.
It was subtle, but she was already taking on the Red Dragon Cleric's natural role as caretaker.
Once the kids were gone, the ladies called for wine from downstairs, and Karl knew that it was going to be a long night.
Karl woke up the next morning to find the other occupants of his bed were Rae, Cara, and a dishevelled Lotus, who was wrapped around the Void Badger making happy sleeping noises.
There was snoring coming from the living room, more than seemed likely for just two people, so most of the others must have passed out there after he went to sleep. Only habit had gotten him up this early, but it was a prime opportunity for them to order breakfast and not be the one tortured by the smell of fresh food for once.
At first, Karl considered cooking, but after getting spoiled by the building's chefs and the clerics, he couldn't bring himself to have another of the simple meals that were all he actually knew how to cook.
Bacon and eggs were a wonderful breakfast. But bacon and eggs with all the fancy sauces and garnishes was even better.
Karl dressed in the black pants and white shirt of his official uniform, then reminded himself to have Rae make more clothes for him when she had time.
[There is a whole stack in my forest. The hut with all the little ghosts hanging from the roof.] Rae offered, without moving from her spot in bed.
Indeed, there was. Quite an impressive selection, even if it looked like they were all the failed efforts to make something else. Not bad enough for her to destroy, but piled in a storage space out of the way.
Karl grabbed a pair of black pants and a light grey polo shirt with a spider embroidered over the pocket, and padded out to the front room.
But not everyone was asleep.
There was an assortment of breads, meats and cheeses on the table, accompanied by five blue robed clerics.
The cleric sitting at the foot of the table turned to smile at him, and spoke softly, in a practised Library whisper.
"Monarch. Please join us for breakfast. We were sent over by The Head Librarian to see if you had time to make a copy of the new skill today, and to ask some questions about Runecrafting. She had wanted to ask them herself, but in all the confusion yesterday, she forgot. Today, she is busy with the Archbishop, and won't be able to attend before you are busy with the students."
"Then I bet you're glad it didn't teach you the skill."
The Clerics all nodded in unison, and carefully flipped through the book with soft cotton gloves on, so they didn't mark or damage the pages.
"This is incredible. The details that go into this skill are so extensive that I can't even really consider it a Golem. It is a construct, and built like a Golem, without internal organs, but otherwise, the magic is so far removed, that structure is all they really have in common." The Priestess explained.
Karl shrugged. "I've never looked through a Golem book. I wonder if I can even use them, since I'm not a mage. Rae can use Golems, but it wasn't a shared skill." "Don't you have enough summons yet? You've got all those bodyguards, and Rae's Golems, and now this Guard. Plus all your partners. Are you trying to become an entire army legion on your own?" One of the Clerics asked, still in the hushed Library whisper tones.
"That's not a bad idea. I wonder if I can make an army of Spiderlings some day?" Rae asked quietly as she appeared at the table beside Karl.
The Blue Dragon Clerics looked horrified.
"An army of Spiderlings? Like dozens of tiny golems?" One asked.
Rae nodded. "Or even an illusion that looks like them, but can still do spider things. Oh, the wonderful things that I could make with an army worth of little versions of me spinning silk."
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