Inheritor Of Magic: The Magi King

Once Wolfe had finished ordering and the drinks were delivered to their table, a pleasantly sweet red wine that was supposed to pair well with the day's signature appetizers, a merchant from a nearby table came to greet them.

"Patriarch Noxus, I am Jeremy, of the Red River Trading Company, from which you made a purchase earlier today. If it's no trouble, I came to ask you about the curious artifacts that you paid with, and to invite you to a gathering of Merchants later this evening.

Everyone who is anyone will be there tonight, and I strongly suspect that you are someone." The man introduced himself, with genuine interest in his black eyes.

Wolfe smiled back at him. "I suppose that could be possible once the young ones were in bed. Tell me, have you had a chance to test them? Your sales lady was quite enthralled."

Jeremy chuckled softly and nodded his head in agreement. "In fact, my men are likely still testing it at the Company's villa here in town. They tried for hours to determine how it was created, without luck, but I suspect that you might know the secret to that, given your intense blessing from the Divine One."

The merchant made a vague gesture toward Wolfe, meaning his magical signature, which Cassie and Ella had both identified as being heavily altered by the energy of the Lowest Planes.

If the locals saw that as a mark of favour from their God, then Wolfe was in luck. Their mages all carried a hint of that Energy, from what Wolfe recalled of facing them in battle, but nothing like what he did after actually spending time in the trials that their Divine One had set up.

"Yes, I have been quite blessed with my magical endowment, but it does come with some drawbacks. I have a horrible time sensing the strength of others. It has led to no end of social faux pas." Wolfe agreed.

He was actually quite good at telling them apart by Rank, but it wasn't as easy as with the Witches, who he could sense from across the city thanks to their aura.

"Then perhaps a guide? I know that our region has some unique customs that you might not be used to, so perhaps you would be willing to accompany my group to the event tonight? If so, I will have an invitation printed for you posthaste, to avoid any unpleasantries from the guards at the Gentlemen's Club."

"Are the ladies permitted? We normally attend such events together." Wolfe asked.

"Of course. The moniker is an old one, from before the days of the Fallen King. These days, it simply means that only those with magic are permitted through the doors of the establishment. It is normally a members' only facility, but tonight is a public social. One of many before the Grand Auction."

"Wonderful timing on our part then, arriving when we did. It saved me so much hassle bidding on items when I managed to obtain treasures for my wives already." Wolfe agreed.

"Wives? I must say, you are a fortunate man. I had thought that one might be your relative, on a search for a suitable suitor to match her status as Blessed." The merchant replied, clearly shocked at Wolfe's comment.

"Will that be an issue here? I can remain silent about the relationship if it is inconvenient." Wolfe asked slyly.

The merchant shook his head and smiled. "No, it is quite alright, though somewhat unfathomable to a man like me who has troubles keeping one wife from becoming a menace to my business ventures."

Cassie chuckled at his comment. "Fortunately for the Patriarch, we are both excellent in business, and able to keep things running during his frequent absences. It is uncommon that we both travel with him, but we were summoned for an urgent matter this time."

That was entirely too euphemistic, but the merchant took it as them being needed to take care of some business matter with a partner that trusted them implicitly thanks to their prolonged dealings while Wolfe was away.

"Then I will excuse myself and have the company carriage prepared for after dinner. I am personally staying at the Company's villa, but we have a number of our staff staying here in the hotel." The merchant explained.

"I will be looking forward to this evening." Wolfe agreed.

The merchant returned to his table, and Wolfe's table was brought their food, served as six small courses for the main table, and three for the kids.

Not that Stephanie was complaining. This body she had been assigned was small, and after the soup and the main, she hardly had room for dessert. Molly was the same, but was so enthusiastic about trying new foods that she ate until she was nearly sick, and Stephanie had to stealthily heal her.

Wolfe could tell that half the people in the restaurant could tell she used magic, but not what, so she got away without anyone noticing the unusual skills of their group.

Wolfe extended his senses out to the Gentlemen's Club, or at least what he hoped was it, and checked the outfits that everyone was wearing. It all looked very ritualistic, and Wolfe was concerned that he wouldn't be able to make appropriate attire to match that.

But when they got back to their room, the maids had left three outfits on the bed, with a note saying to call them if alterations were needed and that these were the formal dress code for the local events, and not for international events, which used the standard formal garb.

"That's interesting. There are different tiers of outfits based on the calibre of the event, and not just the formality of the event and the status of the person attending." Cassie noted.

"That's almost the same for the Families back home. You dress a bit better to go meet with other Families than you do for similar events among your own." Wolfe agreed.

"Now, do we make duplicates of these with magic? Or just wear an invisible barrier over top?" Ella asked.