Transcendence?

***Norfolk, Sarn-Valley***

“Shalala.....” I skip along the corridor towards the office while humming a really childish tune. Freedom! No slave-rings any more.

Well. Relative freedom. I have to marry that stupid hermit to gain a citizenship for myself and the kids. Haaah... nothing comes without a price.

At least I get a big house and a lot of money with a principality too. So even if there is no love, it has benefits, many benefits!

Who ever said that you have to work hard to gain power in every reincarnation? Just find a powerful husband and take his stuff! Mwhaahahaha!

“You have a really dangerous expression on your face Miss Celestial.” Sarah smiles at me when I enter the reception.

“Really!? That must be the power of ~love~!” I smile at our... my secretary.

“It looked more like the grin of a tiger who just slew a really fat pig.” Sarah is giving me a straight forward answer without holding back.

It has been a day since the announcement of my marriage. Sarah wasn't happy with the situation at all. She likes the kids but thinks that I am some kind of black widow.

“Is that so? I guess it can be seen that way.” I tap my chin with my left index finger.

“I think the proper term is gold-digger.” Sarah continues her fearless statements while smiling at me. Does she have a problem with my path out of slavery!?

“Do you have a problem with a former slave who turned the tables on his master?” I smile at Sarah while trying to look harmless.

“I am just curious which leverage you have on him. Master is a very dangerous fellow but he did many good things for the whole region. It would bug me very much if he became unhappy in the end.” Now Sarah's smile becomes a little dangerous.

Ooh... “Do you like him!? You should have said so earlier! That hermit is just so grumpy because he has nobody who looks out for him!”

“No. I would never marry someone out of my league.” Sarah answers with unwavering confidence. Um.. Why did that sound as if she was superior to her master?

“I am just not happy if someone who did a lot of good for the people of this town would end up with a poisonous snake in his bed. Even if he did everything for his own benefit.” Sarah's states her view of me even more clearly.

“We don't know each other for long. How about giving me some time to prove myself?” I open the door towards the office and take a look inside.

Sarah follows me with a stash of papers. “In hindsight I will watch you for a little while. You seem to look out for the children at least. Here are the reports. And your table arrived.”

There it is! A brand new big table for me alone! It's standing beside the entrance to the office. No children-table with fifty centimetres of height any more! My former table is leaning against the wall on the other side. I grab the stupid miniature table which I got from Ascathon.

*Crack, Crack, Crack, Crack*

Four legs are snapped off.

*Snap!*

*Snap!*

Here we go! Neatly folded for waste-disposal!

I hand the remains of the stupid table to Sarah whose expression suddenly dropped. “Something wrong?”

“You... you folded the table like a sheet of paper!?” Sarah gasps.

Kukuku... Should I feign ignorance? “What's the difference? Paper or table... both are made of wood.”

Sarah grabs the remains and leaves the room. I think I could get used to teasing her. Then I start to take control of the office. That hermit underestimated my administrative abilities!

First I have get a grip on the economy of this principality. Then I can increase the income and financial power to a reasonable level. And when the money starts to flow I can start to investigate the war between Mislow and Jamaian.

Up until now I was dependent on Ascathon's informations. There is no acceptable news-network in this world. If Ascathon wants to learn something new he has to take the Gate to the capital and talk to the Jarl or some other noble who deals with external affairs.

Listening to merchants is the other possibility but they never know anything beyond general knowledge of a countries situation. If you want to get political information you need to go to the source.

For real information you need your own network of spies! And spies want money! So I will pep up the finances of this stupid principality first.

I already had a glimpse at the tax reports and from what I saw there we don't use all our possibilities.

It's good that Ascathon went to the capital to get some needed documents. This gives me the entire day to overhaul this office! With no further ado I throw myself into the work.

Several hours later I discovered Ascathon's chair for myself. It's really comfortable with thin elastic steel bars. The normal chairs in this world are big, massive, unmoving hulks and made of wood.

This comfy armchair stands in a real contradiction to that. I could get used to this. While I read one of Ascathon's reports I start to seesaw.

At that moment the door opens and Ascathon enters. He looks into my direction and spots me in his chair, at his desk. Hopefully soon to be my chair and my desk.

He points a scroll towards me. “My chair! Get Out!”

“Why? I did all the office work today! I don't see a reason why I shouldn't be allowed to use it too!” I smile at him.

“The chair is where I draw the line! Out, or I will rip this!” He threatens to rip the scroll? Don't tell me those are the marriage documents and the adoption form! Noo! My principality!

I jump out of the chair and take the scrolls. Ascathon looses no time to reclaim his position with a grumpy expression.

Meanwhile I start reading the scrolls. Everything seems to be in order and as agreed upon.

Ascathon already signed the magical document and infused his mana into it. Almost all documents of value in this world work like that. It's impossible to fake such a signature.

Eeeh... how lazy.... if I would give this to someone else I could marry the hermit to ~anyone~. If that wouldn't be fun! Should I trick Sarah into signing it? Or Den! ~Yes~! Den and the hermit are a perfect match!

I should found a marriage-bureau. Maybe I will do that in my next life.....

Aaahhh.... But if I do this there will be no principality for me. Sometimes you have to bite into something sour to appreciate your life.

I sign the document and smile at Ascathon. “Dear husband! Have you already thought about a place to hold a proper ceremony and spend our honeymoon?” Ah, it's so fun to tease peo....

Ascathon draws two other papers out of his pocket and slams them on the table. “One week on an abandoned island in the Nation of Mist. A ship captain whom I know will hold the ceremony.”

Eh!? Why would he think of something like that under these circumstances? Is he the romantic type? Why would he?

“Don't get the wrong idea! I did it just for Liandra and Violetta. Do you have anyone you would want to invite.” He looks at me with a questioning gaze.

Eh? Ehm? “Let's see... most of the people I know are affiliated to Mislow and Jamaian. So, no? Unless they open the borders all of a sudden.”

Ascathon shakes his head. “Won't happen. That means I will just invite Kane and his girlfriend, Den, Sarah and Stefan. There is no need for our staff to sit around on their asses while the mansion is empty.”

“Kane? Where did I hear that name before?” I mumble to myself while I think hard.

“A little smaller than me. Brown hair, rich merchant....” Ascathon starts to explain when I remember the person who was always hanging out with him in school.

“Ah! I know! The creepy guy whose family is involved in all sorts of dubious trading actions and businesses which are very close to being illegal!” I snap my fingers as I remember the rumours about that guy.

Both Ascathon and Kane were loners. They never tried to associate themselves with anyone else.

“Even if a trade is close to being illegal, it doesn't mean that it is illegal.” Ascathon defends the honour of his friend.

“Who would have thought that you two are close enough to keep contact even after your graduation.” I smile at the hermit.

The hermit sighs. “Well, you should thank him for being such a creepy fellow. It's thanks to him that I was at that slave auction to walk into my own doom.”

“Ah... now a lot of things become clear to me. I asked myself for quite a while why you were there! Let me guess. He was the other masked fellow. I ask myself if he knew beforehand that I was there.” I tap my chin while speaking loud.

Ascathon's expression turns dark and he starts to mumble.

“I will have little private talk with him when I see him again.”

.