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20

Was a trap set for me? But why? I see no reason. None. Yes, in the old days, the Guards of Antreya were a formidable force and had a huge impact on royal politics, but now ... Already under my father, the services of the Ra-Gro family were practically not used. Special services, I mean. Therefore, you have to mind your own business, helping Callie in his trading operations, in order to at least somehow justify the funds going to the maintenance of the shelter, and to carry the most ordinary shifts in the port. It makes very little sense to me. Yes, I can make a mess within the limits of my own perverted fantasy, but no more. Yes, I have the right to kill without explanation, but ... When did I use this right? In fact, I'm quite harmless. And yet, someone needed to sneak into the shelter under the cover of twilight, pour oil on the walls, after “drying” the tree,

Yes, the most charred panels are in the alcove, which Hammis politely but vaguely called "the last third of the corridor." What was depicted on the canvas? More precisely, who was depicted?

“Dan the Overseer,” they called softly from behind.

- Mm?

- Don't be so angry...

I turned and lifted my chin so I could see the guilty look on Seppin's face.

Yes, screw up. Because the wooden worker, who, by the will of fate, turned out to be an inhabitant of the shelter and my ward, was almost two heads taller than me.

A hefty fellow with a meek disposition, this man, who is my age, arrived in Antreya not just like that, but at the invitation of one of the nobles, because he was considered (and quite deservedly) to be a very good woodworker. Of course, he arrived not alone, but with his family - his wife and mischievous twins of ten years for two. But since the stay in the city was to be delayed for several months, or even more, Seppin appeared before my bright eyes. And I, without doubts and hesitations (which I simply do not suffer from due to my hereditary features), discovered in him a tendency to “water madness”.

It became a tragedy. Both for the family and for the employer, since it is forbidden to accept any crafts from the hands of a madman in Antrey: the superstition is too strong that you can get infected even breathing the same air with the unfortunate. Perhaps it is not unfounded, but I know that in all the centuries of careful observation of such cases, no such cases have been identified, therefore, the risk is very small. It can be said that it is insignificant ... In general, the guy and his relatives were shocked. And then ... To be honest, I was filled with great respect for Seppin, because the woodworker, instead of returning back (not least due to the fact that the farm and workshop outside Antreya had already been sold and the family was going to settle in our city), spent all the days and nights until the first signs of "water madness" to fulfill orders. Worked like crazy but still he managed to do enough and provide his wife and children with several comfortable years of life. And I, under the impression of this noble deed, procured from the queen a support for the Seppin family. Let not too generous, but worthy. In addition, by hiring your own woodworker in the shelter, it was possible to significantly reduce the cost of repairing furniture, window frames and other wooden utensils, which no one would renovate in the coming years anyway. Well, yes, a practical approach to life, so what? It does not prevent me from judging the merit of other people's qualities, equally wonderful and bad ... by having their own woodworker in the shelter, it was possible to significantly reduce the cost of repairing furniture, window frames and other wooden utensils, which no one would renovate in the coming years anyway. Well, yes, a practical approach to life, so what? It does not prevent me from judging the merit of other people's qualities, equally wonderful and bad ... by having their own woodworker in the shelter, it was possible to significantly reduce the cost of repairing furniture, window frames and other wooden utensils, which no one would renovate in the coming years anyway. Well, yes, a practical approach to life, so what? It does not prevent me from judging the merit of other people's qualities, equally wonderful and bad ...

Why do you think I'm angry?

Seppin sniffled, his fluffy blond brows furrowed comically. I don't know what province of Western Shem he came from, but the color of his hair could compete with the brightness of the recent whitewashing of the basements. Maybe he burned out in the sun, maybe all his ancestors were distinguished by a similar “whiteness”. In any case, the giant looked touching and harmless, but on that significant evening, when I came to once again check how close the carpenter came to his limit, a completely different sight appeared before my eyes.

The rough features of the broad face, by their appearance, evoked only one definition: stiffened. But the eyes, usually light blue, seemed black due to pupils dilated to a dangerous size, darting from one side to the other, and not always smoothly. Actually, this is one of the signs of "water madness": loss of control over the eyes. Moreover, the sick person does not lose sight, but it becomes very peculiar - it focuses only on an object that seems to be a threat to the inflamed consciousness. Of course, having crossed the threshold of the room, I became such an object.

I can't say exactly how many minutes or hours it took to persuade Seppin to leave alone the chisel, clenched white with tense fingers. I remember that I only looked at her, and I myself kept thinking: is it time to take the sword out of its scabbard, or can we avoid bloodshed for a few more breaths? The forces were unequal from the very beginning, but not at all in the sense that you might imagine.

Yes, there were three bodyguards behind me. Yes, they were ready to close me from danger, but only close. Both the decision and the blow - everything lay on my conscience. The guards protect me from assassination attempts and other cases that could cause injury, but have no right to interfere with my work. Under fear of punishment, and very severe. The fact is that now any person whose "madness" is established, without long delays, is transferred to the category of those citizens of Antreya who fall under royal guardianship, which means that any harm to them is considered a crime against the throne. And my bodyguards are no exception: they should at least hook with the tip of the blade ... But what am I talking about ?! Even hit with a fist - imprisonment cannot be avoided. Foolish rules? I do not argue. But first of all, the rules SHOULD BE,

So fools are untouchable. For everyone but me. And in principle, this is true: who is to blame for the fact that one person is alive and well, and the other loses his head from a sip of water? Nobody. And so I go into battle alone. Always alone.

Seppin could crush me without much difficulty. True, the chisel would have stuck in Ballig's body before that, my "shell", and since there was no chance to win on the fists, on that memorable evening the woodworker could easily find rest from the kiss of my sword. But didn't find it. Because, to be honest, I was a little scared.

I don't like fighting to the death. Drunken brawls do not count: this is just a rest for the soul and body. But when sharp steel is used ... I don’t like it. I know how, I don’t experience any special heartache and other unpleasant sensations at the sight of spilled blood, but I hate it. As a child, my father told me that one should kill one's own kind only if there is no other way out. For example, when you yourself are in mortal danger, then you simply should not think about it. But if the situation is "frozen", you need to make every effort to make it melt in the right direction.

I read all the shades of feelings that filled the woodworker in those moments. I felt his pain and despair as if it were my own. Lost with him in the whirlwind of images that changed places and distorted the present beyond recognition. But, as with most illnesses, a path to healing can be found, "water madness" is also manageable. If you find that thread on which consciousness is kept from jumping into the abyss.

Seppin had such a thread: doubt, but whether he managed to do everything he had to. That is, did he manage to protect both himself and his family from poverty. Once I read this doubt, I could breathe out and let go of my own fear - the fear of taking on the death of an innocent person. And then began the long and painful return of the woodworker home from the forest of madness.

Word by word, phrase by phrase, I made my way through a heap of delusions that usually hid somewhere at the bottom of the consciousness of a man who remained half a child and, probably, because of this, he was able to create things from wood akin to fairy-tale miracles. What was not there ... And every shadow had to be noticed, caught, read and correctly understood, so that the next exhorting phrase would not spoil the situation, but improve it. Hard work. I suspect that some of my predecessors in such cases did not spend money immediately drawing weapons. Why didn't I follow their example? Don't know. Probably out of avarice. Well, yes, I come across so few reasons for applying the knowledge hammered into my head that I happily grab onto each of them. Then I regret it, of course. But not for long. So I regretted with Seppin - exactly until that very minute,

- Well, Duc ... Look how much damage. And you think of us, right?

I sighed and scratched behind my ear.

“What, did you really set it on fire?”

- Yes, we are completely bad, dan Overseer, to destroy our own house! the woodworker was offended.

Actually stupid. Durki, as they are called in Antrey. And, accordingly, they call me a jerk. But I'm not offended, because I really am "with fools."

Don't make excuses, I know you're not to blame.

Seppin breathed a sigh of relief. I know why: misdemeanors were punishable, and I never broke this rule. There was a matter of firstness, when I forgave everything that was necessary, but ... Faced with the fact that my serious and fair demands were not accepted for execution, I slightly brutalized and tightened discipline. I myself was sick of my own “hardness”, but these sufferings brought benefits: now any of my words, spoken in a cold tone, is honored as an order.

- And for you personally, a job has been formed.

The woodworker pricked up his ears in delight.

— Take off all this burning and make a new cladding. I agree?

You shouldn't have asked. What else will bring real pleasure to the master, if not a favorite work?

- How not to do it, let's do it! Only I would saw the boards myself, if dan the Superintendent does not mind: right there it will be necessary to accurately select the pattern so that each curl is in its place, and not randomly.

- Yes, yes ... We drank ourselves, of course. I'll arrange for the needed wood to be delivered. Just make sure you figure out what you need first.

— Yes, not so much, dan Overseer! Only the young will not fit, it will be necessary to pick up trunks over fifty years old, and not from the field, but from that part of the forest where ... - Seppin began enthusiastically, but I waved my hand tiredly:

“Later, okay? Write it down if you can. And for starters, remove all the muck, my head hurts from this smell.

— As you wish, dan Overseer!

The woodworker cheerfully stomped for the proper tools, and I returned to the office, where I found ... My subordinate, running away from work at every opportunity.

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Alden, out of breath and flushed, tried to pretend that he had been sitting in his chair for an hour, waiting for me. I understood, of course, that all attempts would be in vain, but I did not completely lose hope. The correct approach, by the way, is to pretend that everything is fine, when, on the contrary, everything is terrible. I sometimes use it myself.

I slowly and majestically (I don’t know what it looks like from the outside, and I don’t want to know: I’ve always had a pretty inner feeling) proceeded to my place, made my ass comfortable, leaned back in my chair and folded my arms over my chest, giving a look gazing into space an expression of mournful condescension.

The freckles on Ollie's broken nose thought for a moment and hid in small folds when the magician naively said:

“I didn't expect to meet you today, and especially not here.

- Yes, I'm so unpredictable and sudden ... But it's not about me, who has a legal basis for shirking my service. As for why other personas are not where they should be, I would like to know. Highly.

Alden narrowed his eyes, trying to look innocently offended.

“Actually, since you are currently out of service, your visit to the orphanage can only be regarded as a private visit.

Right, bastard. But when did I retreat in front of superior enemy forces?

“Yes, a private visit from a sole proprietor demanding a deed from a hired servant.

Who is the servant here?

- Point your finger?

Alden was seriously offended, although I did not lie in one detail: he is my servant. Regarding shelter matters. And he holds the position of a doctor, designed to monitor the condition of the people contained in the shelter. He receives a salary for this, by the way, unlike me. And not only for that.

So, I'm eager to get a report.

- Right now?

- What's stopping you? Keep in mind, I can demand that it be in writing, which, of course, will take up part of the time that you have allocated to work on finding the perfect lover.

“You bastard, Raiden.

- That's what we're holding on to! I slide down in my chair and put my feet up on the table.

Well, now Ollie will pout and consider me a bad person, looking where they are not asked. Nothing, I'll survive.

- But you promised. A stern reproach, both in his voice and in his gloomy eyes.

- What exactly?

- Do not sniff.

“And I didn’t sniff.”

Lips curled up in an incredulous smile.

- Of course, I can’t prove it, but ... You and I had the same guild mentor, if you remember. So why do you think that of the knowledge intended for both of us, I have not learned a crumb?

Alden looked away, considering my words.

Great mystery, you might think! In fact, the answer is nowhere simpler.

What is madness? Loss of control over the mind and sensations, you will say and you will be right. There is only one “but”: a person who has gone mad continues to live and at times acts on envy in a meaningful way, so it’s not immediately clear who is more reasonable - he or everyone else. Consequently, the “descent” itself does not occur anywhere, but only means a transition from one step to another. And this very other step establishes its control over the personality. Thus, madness can be seen as a change of ruler. And since "water madness" is caused by a certain composition of drinking water, it means that you can choose a combination of substances that will ensure a change in the ruler, directed in the right direction. In short, there is a possibility of subordinating another person to your aspirations, and the probability is quite high. Actually, this is what Alden is doing:

Yes, it was possible to strain and penetrate the magician's thoughts in the way that I can do it. But why, if everything is already in the palm of your hand? Well, just think, in my distant youth I received a turn from the gate! I would take it and find a more accommodating fool, but no - you have to spend your energy, time and government money on obviously useless nonsense. Silly ... Well, he will bewitch a beauty for himself, and then what? She will look into his mouth with adoration and fulfill any fantasies. Day month Year. All life. And get bored ... Eerily. And Ollie will not be able to leave her, and he is well aware of this little flaw of his: never avoid answering for what he did. The question is, why the hell?