Not from leaving, but he is stalled after.

Norman gave a large sigh before nodding and standing up. "I shall see you off then."

We returned to the routine of Norman silently leading us through his maze of a house. By the time we returned to the main area where all the guests had been, it was quite clear they had all left a long time ago. The room was currently being tidied by a collection of staff as we passed through.

The travel to the front entrance was otherwise uneventful. A few servants bowed to us as we went along, a good feeling as always. No conversation occurred before we were at the exit to the house.

Upon reaching the door, Norman cleared his throat. "Well, I understand that tonight was quite... eventful. I apologize for the behavior of my children, past and present." He looked to Oliver while saying past and myself during present. "I am looking forward to hosting you in order to go over the building plans for the church, yes?"

I gave a bow, "Of course."

He gave a short nod, "Of course. Well then, I bid you goodnight."

With that, me and Oliver left. We nodded to the guards on our way out the gate. It wasn't until we were about halfway from the manor back into town that Oliver spoke to me.

He turned towards me in a sharp swift movement, "May I ask you something?" He seemed hesitant.

I gave him a friendly smile, "Of course, what is it?"

He took a deep breath, brining himself to the courage of asking. He eventually got out, "What are the Ideals your god strives for?"

I tilted my head as I thought of an answer. I settled on a nicer phrasing of what I had told Smoke and Shina, "Moged-Ruun wishes to see a world where everyone can grow. Whether that be in power or in physicality, Moged-Ruun wants all beings to strive for their own purpose, and not to follow others just to steal their purpose."

He looked at me confused, "Your god does not wish for people to follow him then?"

I held up my hand and shook my head, "No no no, you misunderstand. Following another is not the problem, but instead those who do nothing but follow, striving for nothing but to replace the one they follow through their politics or schemes. Moged-Ruun does not see following as bad, but following without purpose."

A slight look of realization passed his face and he nodded, "I see." 'Good, because most of that was word slop.' He surprised me for the second time with his next question. He seemed to have even greater nerves for this one, "Does your lord have need for a swordsman?"

I was taken aback, unable to hide my surprise. After blinking a few times then recomposing myself, I responded, "Uh, well yes, I suppose-"

He looked at me with determination in his eyes, "Then may I serve Moged-Ruun as well?"

I gave a friendly chuckle. 'Well, this is going faster and better than I had planned, but I can't seem excessively eager.' I responded with a somewhat serious voice, "Are you certain you wish to? Service to a god is not so easily removed as service to another form of lord." He seemed somewhat torn, and didn't respond for quite awhile. I gave a sigh, "I believe you should most certainly talk with your friends about it first."

He nodded his head slowly, "Yes, I suppose I should." He looked up to me, "But I will swear on my life, when the time comes."

I could not be more thrilled internally, "If that is what you desire, then decide for when the church is finished."

He gave a firm nod, "I will"

With that, we resumed our walk. He walked with more conviction now, I noticed. I smirked to myself at how convenient it was to have someone like Oliver. 'He is a skilled knight, someone with great loyalty and determination, and has decent connections as well. If he does swear himself to... well... me, then his physical abilities should increase greatly, making him even more powerful.'

My thoughts continued, making plans for the church and Oliver. We walked down the streets of town during our late night walk, pausing only for a moment when we saw some people gawk (Sorry, couldn't help myself). Besides making that tune out a classic winter song, I thought about what I would do with Shina.

My thoughts were unable to finish, as we reached the inn. Oliver opened the door for me, and we went inside.