Natalia

“Anything else we should do my Lady?” Lillian asked.

“I wish to brew and I would also like to go outside the area to see if there is any other rare finds. So I believe I need head maid Celeste permission?”

Celeste shook her head. “No. Our Lady of the Night does not need my permission. I worry about your safety.”

I turned to look out towards the land around the castle. It was overgrown, it wasn’t the amount of land a small crew could tend too but I didn’t see anything dangerous looking.

“Is it that dangerous?” I asked.

Natalia shook her head. “It is not. But if I may, allow me to accompany you my Lady. It would put Celeste mind at ease and I can help carry things for you.”

I nodded. “Okay. I suppose then. Celeste, Freya, Lillian and Iris. You should tend to bathing soon. And I imagine you are getting hungry. Please ensure everyone is well washed, rested and fed before I return.”

The four girls gave a curtsy before me and Natalia walked off. She was carrying a few boxes for me. I was walking in a straight line and after about ten minutes of walking we came to a wall. It was wooden and went in a circle. It didn’t look like something part of the original estate. “Did Master build this wall?”

Natalia nodded. “Yes. Before I arrived.”

“Can we look a bit beyond it?” I asked.

She shook her head. “I apologize my Lady. But we are not permitted to go past this fence. Not even you my Lady.”

My brain was working overdrive. “Okay. Let us continue this way.” I walked along the fence. I noticed it was indeed circular. A wooden circle to contain us. I brushed my hand against the wood. I could feel mana but not in the wood itself. I reached up and touched above the fence and over it.

Natalia grabbed my hand as the boxes tumbled to the ground. “My Lady! What are you doing?”

“Pardon. I was not planning to leave. I was just feeling the flow of mana. It is different on the other side of the fence. Hmm.. though you don’t use magic. I suppose you wouldn’t know. Would you help me lean my hand over? I have no intentions of leaving.”

She shook her head. “I apologize my Lady. But we need Master’s permission for that. Should we seek his approval?”

I titled my head. “No, that shall not be needed. I would rather make potion samples for Vivi.”

I saw some utul grass and sat down next to it. Utul grass was about the only worth wild ingredient I noticed along the ground so far. I hadn’t searched even half the area but I didn’t feel like searching any more for now.

I began pulling out ingredients and mixing them together. What would be a good batch of potions to make? Healing for sure. Strength enhancing. Elise asked for erotic potions. I could make a stamina increasing one, but nothing purely sexual from just these ingredients. It felt good to be doing proper brewing again. Hmm… how odd. I had only been here a few days.

Yet it felt like some much longer. It felt like a life time ago that I was bothered by my breasts showing. It felt like a long time ago that Master took my virginity. I blushed thinking about that. It was not even twenty four hours though. Was the charm messing with my perception of time? I can’t recall anything like that ever happening from charms.

I can’t even see why it would. Usually only the initial casting causes a sense of loss of time… wait! That’s it! I looked at the wooden wall. “Natalia, I would like for you to do me a favor,” I said.

“Whatever do you need my Lady?” she asked.

“These wooden boards seem identical. I would like you to count them. Walk the entire circle and tell me the total number. Note if any appear to be different sizes.”

She stood up. “You aren’t going to leave while I am gone are you?”

I smiled. “That is right. I gave you pause that I may break the rules didn’t I? You are the security expert. Tell me, should you leave me be?”

She paused. “I would be less concerned if I didn’t see you reach your hand over.”

I paused and looked at her. “Rest assure. I have no intentions of leaving. Quite the contrary, I am eager to hear your report. It may sound like busy work but I assure you it is important.”

She gave a curtsy. “Then I shall doubt our Lady no longer.” She began walking away.

I would leave my speculation for later. I wanted to brew more. I brewed every potion I could think of with these supplies and in my passion, I realized, I brewed an anti charm potion. The silver fluid sitting in my mixing bowl.

I am charmed. I could dispel it. Then the **** telling me not to hope the fence would end. It would be… easy. Just one drink.

Words echoed in my mind. “You should protect the charm,” from Celeste. “It is logical to stay,” from Victoria. Even Natalia’s worried voice. Would she be punished if I escaped. But most of all. Master’s kind words. “I trust you.”

I set the mixture down. Erg. What to do! I am a diviner. What else should I do, but divine. I grabbed some materials and began mixing them into a bowl. I smeared six leaves with the mixture before I began praying. “God of the stars that guide us. I as a humble mortal seek your divine wisdom. I have prepared this for you. I hope you enjoy them.”

Light flickered and all but two leaves vanished. Got it. That mean the god of stars would permit me two questions. “Should I take this anti charm potion?”

One leaf vanished. The god of stars wasn’t so kind to answer directly or explain. I had to say potential answers until the bowl flickered. “No.”

No reaction. Damn it.

“Yes,” I said and the bowl flickered. So even the god thinks I should drink this. But I don’t want to! But I was a diviner. What kind of diviner would ignore gods wisdom.

One question left? I walked over to the board and measured it. About six inches. I did the math in my head. If what I thought was true, than this fence should contain about… sixty to seventy thousand boards.

“To the nearest ten thousand, how many boards does this fence have?” I asked. The leaf vanished.

“Fifty thousand?” No reaction. “Sixty?” No reaction either. “Seventy?” Still nothing. “Eighty?” A flicker.

Hmm. I would still consider that a reasonable result. I knew how he was charming me. The golden idol of Emula. It was a magic item that could amplify the range of spells. If I did the calculation of a charm spell being amplified by it. It would reach a range of one mile in every direction. Which would be the length of this wooden gate. He wanted us to stay entranced.

Wait. Why didn’t I just ask the god of stars if he had the golden idol! This damn charm. It’s messing with my critical thinking skills! I glanced at the fence. “Okay Rosemary. You can do this. You can think clearly. Let think. A simple logical line of reasoning. It isn’t that hard!”

I tapped the fence. I needed to keep emotion out of it. Facts. Simple facts. Okay. What kind of life have I lived? Well when I was actually young I was constantly studying. I hated my gross body and wanted to change it. I ended up not finding what I wanted and instead began helping the kingdom. I served as head wizard for nearly forty years. I… was miserable.

I think. Unsatisfied to say the least. Then I finally got the body I wanted, I said looking at myself. I quit being the head wizard because I wanted to finally live a life for myself. I remember that yeah. I remember thinking. “Is it selfish to live one of my lives for myself?”

Wait. Then logically what am I even thinking. I am a **** right now. I grabbed the bowl. I brought it to my lips. But what life would I be returning too?

I lived on the road. I didn’t really have any friends. No family. No place to call home. I never even had a boyfriend. Just cold nights. But I was helping people as an adventurer… but was that the chains that enslaved me? Did Master free me?

I set the bowl down and slammed my fist against the wooden planks. What do I do! My sisters flashed in my eyes. I loved them. Master too. I clenched my stomach as I remembered the sensation of him inside me.

I grabbed the bowl. If I truly love them. Then the charm ending won’t change anything!

“I trust you,” I remembered Master saying. He gave me permission to brew anything because he trusted me. If I drink this and break his spell. Then I betrayed his trust. Celeste trusted me too because I was the Lady of the Night. Natalia too.

I pulled the anti charm potion into a glass vial and capped it. “I am sorry that I was so close to failing you Master,” I whispered in the direction towards the castle. “I shall use all that I am to protect you, my sisters and this beautiful place.”

(Author's note. Plenty of girls have had a bath while Rosemary was having this moment. So I figured this is a good place to fork into them if someone wants to write about that. I did a few bath scenes already. I really don't think I am the expert to bring out the true potential of that kind of scene. But I figured a bunch of you want to read that. And if even 1/10th of the readers write one such scene, more fun for everyone else to have! :D)