Steam curled off the surface of the bath as the last of the afternoon light bled through the high windows. The water had gone still.
Arthur stood at the edge of the courtyard, dressed for travel — dark coat, leather boots, a bag slung over one shoulder. The mountain air bit at his skin after the warmth of the baths. Mira stood a step behind him, her maid uniform crisp and proper, her hair pinned back. No trace of the woman from the bath. The mask was on. His was too.
The carriage waited by the gate, a modest unmarked carriage prefect for a long journey. Two horses stamped at the cobblestones.
"Arthur."
Calling out his name, Arthur turned around to see his mother standing at the manor entrance. Her auburn hair loose falling at her shoulders, she wears a dark green dress that's fitted like armor.
She had the look of a woman who could pour you tea or break your jaw, and you wouldn't know which until it was too late.
"Yes Mother?" Arthur asks.
"You aren't going to the academy dressed like that, are you, Mister?" She walked over and grabbed his tie, straightening it with practiced hands.
"Mom, we both know my tie was fine. If you want to say you love me and worry about me, you can just say so." Arthur shook his head.
"You know I can't do that. I have an image to uphold." His mother scoffed at his words.
'Right. Because the lady who got caught having a foursome in the woods is worried about her image.' Arthur kept the thought to himself, knowing she just wanted the best for him.
"And besides, it seems you're forgetting something."
Arthur gave his mother a surprised look. He couldn't think of anything he'd forgotten.
Reaching for the ring on her left hand, she pinched the air as if grabbing something — and from thin air, a wand appeared.
Long as a forearm, it was wooden in colour like that of a redwood tree, with intricate carvings etched along its stem.
Arthur stared. He didn't know what to say. While they were a noble family, they sat at the bottom of the ladder.
With his father being Baron nearly every coin the house earned went to funding and manning the army that held the border. Luxuries like this didn't come easy.
"I don't know what to say. Thank you, Mom." Arthur took the wand, holding it in his hand, eyes tracing the carvings.
"Don't thank me, thank your father. Since he couldn't be here today to see his youngest off to the academy, he thought the least he could do was leave you a gift in his stead." His mother smiled, knowing full well how much this meant, to Arthur and his father.
"Now, you best get on the road, lest you want to be late." She grabbed Arthur by the shoulders and steered him toward the carriage.
"And you, Mira." His mother turned to the maid.
"Yes, madam?"
"Take care of my child, will you?"
"Always, madam." Mira bowed.
Stepping into the carriage both Arthur and Mira wave out of the window as they roll out of the manor.
"Make sure you write home!" His mother called out.
"I will!" Arthur yells back as he watches the manor grow smaller as they make their journey.
He turned forward, settling into the bench. Mira sat across from him, hands folded in her lap, back straight, the picture of a proper maid. The wand sat in its cloth wrapping beside him. He hadn't stopped thinking about it since his mother placed it in his hand.
'Father. You stubborn old man.'
"How long is the journey, Master?" Mira asked, her eyes on the passing trees.
"Three days, give or take. Depends on the roads near Solaris. Merchant traffic picks up the closer you get to the capital."
Mira nodded. "And the academy itself? You've read more about it than I have."
Arthur leaned back, arms crossed. "Aurelius Royal Academy. A six-year program that specializes in producing the future leaders of the nation—from kings to generals to scholars who rewrite history. Everything stems from there."
"Sounds pretentious," Mira said flatly.
"That's because it is. Though don't worry. While it's mostly full of nobles, over thirty percent are commoners on scholarship or merit. So you won't feel too out of place. I'm sure you'll find some girlfriends to share tea with while you gossip about school drama." Arthur chuckled at the thought of Mira socializing with other maids and students.
"If that's what Master wants, I'll find a couple of girlfriends to chat with and share tea. Who knows? Maybe we'll talk about each other's boyfriends… and maybe share." Mira said.
"Hmm. Doesn't seem like a bad idea. Maybe you can show me some of your girlfriends as well. It wouldn't hurt to have some additional company." Arthur smiled at Mira, who looked at him with a scolding expression.
"Well, if that's what Master wants…" she said, turning away. "And besides, I guess you would have to at some point anyway, since it's the only way for your bloodline to grow…" Mira added somewhat sadly.
Arthur sighed at Mira's sudden sadness. "Come over here." He waved her over, and she sat next to him.
"No, on my lap."
She shifted herself onto him, and Arthur wrapped his arms around her, pulling her close.
"Even with a hundred girls—no matter how many I have to let into my life—you will always be the first. You will always be the one who wins my heart. You will always be the person I think of at night. So forget those sad thoughts and just focus on what's in front of you."
Arthur squeezes Mira tightly showing his love for her.
Mira was quiet in his arms. Then she turned her face into his neck, kissing it softly.
"You're such a terrible master for making your slave feel bad." Her voice was muffled against his collar, but he could hear the smile in it.
Arthur held her tighter. He pressed his lips to the top of her head, breathing in the faint scent of soap and something sweet.
They stayed like that for a while as the carriage rocked gently, the sound of hooves on dirt filling the comfortable silence.
Eventually, Mira pulled back. Her eyes slightly red, but the sadness was gone replaced by a warmer look.. She looked at him with an expression that made his chest ache in a way no cultivation session ever could.
"Thank you, Arthur," she said softly using his name instead of Master.
Then her hand slid down his chest.
"Mira—"
"Shh." She shifted on his lap, turning to face him. Her dark brown eyes locked onto his with a quiet intensity. "You said to focus on what's in front of me."
Her fingers found his belt.
"This is what's in front of me."
Arthur opened his mouth to respond, but Mira pressed a finger to his lips — the same way she'd done in the baths that morning when she'd silenced his protests about the master and slave dynamic.
"You gave me your words," she said, her voice low. "Let me give you mine."
She slid off his lap and onto her knees between his legs. The carriage floor rocked beneath her, but she steadied herself with one hand on his thigh, her dark hair falling forward around her face.
Her fingers worked his belt open, then the buttons. Arthur watched her with quiet attention as he enjoyed his slave serving him..
Already half-hard from having her on his lap, he stiffened fully under her touch as her small hand wrapped around the base.
She looked up at him. "Tell me about the rest of the academy."
Arthur blinked. "What?"
"The houses. You only told me the name. I want to hear the rest." She pressed her lips to the tip soft, almost tender. "I want to hear your voice while I do this."
'This woman is going to be the death of me.'
Arthur exhaled slowly, leaning back against the bench. "Fine. There are Four houses, each one named after an order in the angelic hierarchy."
Mira took the head into her mouth giving it a gentle touch. Treating it with love and care making sure not to miss a spot. The desperation and lust she showed in the bath is all but gone now.
Arthur's hand found her hair, his thumb tracing along her temple.
"Seraphim is the highest," he said, his voice steady but softer than before. "Backed by the royal Aurelian family. They produce the kingdom's kings, generals, and elite. If you're in Seraphim, you're either royalty or powerful enough that no one questions why you're there."
Mira hummed around him a low, warm vibration that made his breath catch. She took him deeper, her lips sliding down his length at an unhurried pace, her tongue pressing flat along the underside.
"Second is Thrones, a military house. Full of Combat bloodlines, and strict discipline. They're the sword of Luminara that creates battlefield commanders, frontline soldiers and truly elite warriors. Respected, but rigid, leaving not much room for creativity."
She pulled back to the tip, swirled her tongue, then sank back down. Her eyes were closed now, her expression almost peaceful like this was meditation for her. A way of being close to him that words couldn't reach.
Arthur's fingers stroked through her hair. His voice came quieter.
"Third arghh. Virtues. The scholars and schemers. It's where research, diplomacy, and strategy are all gather. While less prestigious than Seraphim or Thrones, don't underestimate them. These are the people who actually run the kingdom."
Mira while listening to Arthur pulls his cock out of her mouth giving a few strokes as she lowers her face. Her lips kissing up against his balls as she tastes them giving them a few puckered kisses.
"So full of scientist artificers and polication huh." Mira musses while pumping his cock.
"Arrgh yes they are well known for their schemes through the years." Arthur says as he is forced to throw his head back from the intense pleasure of Mira.
"Then what of the last house?" She asks while licking his cock.
"Watchers the unspoken heroes. They are full of those that do the dirty work from assassins, to specialists, they are full of misfits. People like us.." He paused as she took him deep, her throat opening for him, holding him there for a long moment before pulling back with a soft, wet sound.
"Consider the bottom of the barrel: those that do not meet the standards of other houses are thrown into the Watchers. Force to watch as those around them become greatness while you can only strive for mediocre." Arthur says somewhat mellowly.
"Named after the fallen angels the ones cast out of heaven. It's where they put the minor nobles, the commoners, and anyone whose bloodline doesn't fit the other houses' standards."
Mira opened her eyes and looked up at him. Her lips were wrapped around him, her cheeks flushed, and dark hair casting down.
"Every other house is going to look down on us," Arthur continued, holding her gaze. "Seraphim will pretend we don't exist. Thrones will think we're beneath them. And because I'm a Webb, it'll be even worse. The whispers are going to start the second I walk through the gates."
Mira pulled off slowly, pressing a kiss to the side of his length before speaking. "Let them whisper." Her voice was hoarse but firm. "They don't know what you are."
"No, they don't." Arthur cupped her cheek. She leaned into his palm, turning to kiss it, before taking him back into her mouth.
"I also need to meet up with my siblings. I'm sure both Alaric and Morgana know more about what's going on politics wise at the academy then I'm privy to." Arthur thinks as he quiches his face trying to hold himself back from Mira as at this point she has turned it up another notch.
"It would also be nice to see them. Ohhh." Arthur tries to keep speaking but it gets harder and harder to do so as Mira has started going tip to hilt her tongue dancing on his cock.
As he felt the pressure rise he couldn't help but focus on Mira. Watching as she acted like a vacuum sucking the living out of his cock arose him even more., his face slightly flushed.
"Mira I'm close." His voice coming out rough as Mira deep throat his cock deep into her throat.
"Aggh." With one last groan Arthur grabbed Mira's head pushing her down on his cock as he cum deep in her. Her face widens before forcing back it as she continues to suck his cock.
And as the final drop left his cock Arthur pulled back his cock popping out of her mouth.
"Now show your master your handy work." Arthur says smiling.
Mira as the faithful servant opens her mouth showing a pile of cum on her tongue as she then shallows it.
"Good girl." Arthur rubs her face in praise. "Just make sure you clean your mess. We have a long journey and I don't need my pants to be soiled."
"Yes master." Mira makes sure to do a beautiful clean up blowjob as she cleans every inch of his cock.
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