Count Dufas leaves after getting a promise from Cyrene to visit her Grandmother in the next few days, so she doesn't have to find everything out second-hand.
King James has called a meeting of all available upper Nobles and ministers for the next day to discuss the state of the border regions. The patrolling forces are reporting far fewer sightings of Goblins and Gnolls, with no new reports of Niman Raiders.
The last one is a surprise to most Upper Nobles, as their informants in Nyanko have said the same thing, no attempted breaches in days. Cain knows better. There have been a half dozen smaller raiding parties sent out, but with the advantage of Dark Phoenix to scout from the void, the Echoes have managed to intercept them all.
Their persistence has been very good for Cain, who has just reached level 220. That gives him an even ten skill points, enough to finish up the [Ancient Wisdom] skill tree, allowing him to add one skill from any of his summons to the entire group as a buff, instead of just his Greater Golems or lower. It's also enough points in his secondary skill tree to add a third skill to his puppets.
Now that the ability is unlocked, the life skill improvements can be upgraded. The next tier is still locked and hidden, so he must need to put more points in, but for now Cain is happy to be able to improve the Puppet's life skills. Creating a specialist for every task is a pain; it's much better for him if they all have a strong base skillset.
[Add additional skill to custom Puppet Brother Liu?]
'He's already got a pretty wide variety of cooking skills, so what might he need?' Cain wonders. Better chopping skills might be the answer.
The Elves are among the most skilled sword fighters he knows, so Cain picks [Dark Elven Sword Style: Offense Basics] to add to the chef. If nothing else, it should make him a better guard for the kitchen, using kitchen knives as daggers, but Cain is reasonably sure it's going to be useful while cooking as well.
On the recommendation of Mythryll and Nila, Cain decides to spend the rest of the afternoon relaxing in the spa. The Puppets, with the help of Svetlana and Gwen, have kept the underground furnaces running, so the baths are nice and hot for a good soak before dinner.
He's decided to reintroduce Cyrene to the Nobles in her new form so that anyone who sees her later won't be confused or think she doesn't belong among the nation's noble heirs. Cain also thinks she might finally find a suitor, a caring husband she can settle down and spend her life with.
In her mind, that hasn't been an option since the moment she left the dungeon, but Cain isn't yet aware that she has been plotting with Misha to find a way to stay around him much longer than a few days.
While Cain relaxed in the baths, the two ladies were busy planning their strategy for introducing Cyrene at the morning visit with the Nobles before the King's special meeting began. It's not actually a court session, but with all upper Nobles invited, the atmosphere before the meeting will likely be very similar, and Cyrene hasn't attended before.
The biggest concern is the pettiness of some of the other ladies. Misha found most of them rude and snarky at the best of times but meeting a beautiful young woman who isn't spoken for might be much worse. Especially for Cyrene, who isn't great with people, and now has a long body for them to 'accidentally' step on.
"If only there were something simple that would show everyone that I'm not interested in their husbands. But Skyview doesn't do wedding trinkets, like your Devotion Ring." Cyrene complains. Cain currently has the appearance of the Devotion Ring set as a simple golden circlet around Misha's neck, and she touches it with fondness.
"It's a unique item for sure. What if there's something else like it? The Darklight Host Guild tag should let people know you're under his protection, but that's not going to stop those who think you want their husband. Or the men who might want you as a wife. But that might not be a bad thing. You could land a great husband from among the geezer's sons." Misha teases the Lamia, who gives her the most heartbreaking pout in response.
"Noble sons, who wouldn't even speak to me when I wasn't strong and able? I think not. If even one of them had shown a hint of interest, I wouldn't have been standing alone at the banquet, waiting to be found." Cyrene huffs indignantly.
"What about a matching outfit? If we're both wearing coordinated outfits, that should show them we're together. Cain likes to pick mine for fancy events; then we can have him pick one for you to match." Misha suggests and is instantly enveloped in a full-body Lamia hug.
Like at breakfast, Brother Liu went all out at dinner with a dozen different dishes. He even sent one of the maids through the transport circle to the fish market in the Capital to get him fresh seafood. Cain is sure that it couldn't have been cheap since it costs a gold coin to pass through the public gate, but the result is worth it.
Before bed, Cain moisturizes Cyrene's scales again, finishing by buffing them with a soft cloth. He hopes that will keep her instincts satisfied all night so that she won't wake him up in the morning, but that was not in the plan Misha and Cyrene worked out.
As Cyrene predicted, the two have already become the very best of friends. Even though Misha acknowledges that Cyrene has serious mental issues, they're incredibly in sync.
They like the same things, enjoy each other's company, and more importantly, the Lamia is both utterly devoted to Cain and determined to be the best friend she can be to Misha. Cyrene just needs guidance and structure to help get her used to her new life.
Just after first light, as they agreed, Cyrene comes in with an assortment of dresses that Misha helped her pick out last night. "Master Cain? Can you help me pick an outfit?"
Misha smiles at her new friend as Cain sighs, realizing he's getting up early whether he likes it or not. "Alright, okay, bring them out, and let's see what we're working with."
Count Dufas is part of the Court faction, while Cain is one of the Business Nobles, so he's unsure how Cyrene would prefer to be dressed. Since he's not sure, and she's never seen what they dressed her in before, Cain decides to pick something that goes with the dress he wanted Misha to wear.
It's a long midnight blue off-the-shoulder ball gown, with what he assumes are fake diamonds making it look like a night sky. There's a dress the same color among the items that Cyrene picked out, so he hands it to her.
"Try that on and let me know what you think."
It covers a lot more than she expected, and Cyrene is a bit surprised at how modest the system made it, given the way it usually alters clothes for Lamia. Their outfits are normally just as revealing as Succubus outfits, except with a more beachwear theme instead of the Succubus lingerie.
When she comes back from the bathroom in her new ball gown, Misha is already dressed in a nearly identical gown, and Cain has put on a simple gray three-piece suit with a shirt that matches their dresses. Looking out the window, he reconsiders the coat and rolls up his shirt sleeves, showing a tattoo of a woman who looks suspiciously like Misha hugging a Lamia on one forearm.
"Your tattoos, do they change? I don't remember that one." Cyrene says, indicating his forearm.
"I let the system randomize them every morning when I get dressed. Only once has it come up with something scandalous, and that was on my shoulder." Cain laughs, making Misha blush at the memory.
Curiosity satisfied, Cyrene moves behind Misha and stares at her mass of brunette curls with her hands raised. Her sisters always did each other's hair before going out, but now that she's here, she realizes that the only thing she actually knows how to do is a ponytail.
"Just do to get what I do to you," Cain says softly and picks up the back of Cyrene's hair, twisting it into a bun and letting the ends hang to her shoulders. He inserts a hairpin to hold it and reaches past the Lamia to show her what he did.
With a bit of coaching, Cyrene manages the same, and Cain makes a small braid first on the left, then the right side of her face, leaving them in front of her shoulders. These she has less trouble with, since she saw them being done.
Satisfied that they all look presentable, Cain leads them to the travel circle, knowing breakfast snacks will be served in the Palace.
