Then, with a wink, Lord Marshall gestured to the twenty lancers to leave. They all did when Zach waved his hand at them. They were a very disciplined bunch. Not only did they respond immediately, but they also moved in a very orderly fashion.
The Knight of Bennett didn’t seem to want to see this, though, “Hey, that’s my job, Marshall! Earl Abel is your child, so shouldn’t I be the one to welcome him back?”
Lord Marshall raised his brow, “What nonsense are you spewing this time, Bennett? Abel is our child! Don’t you get it? If you’re going to sort things out like this, it’s going to be very awkward every time he comes back.”
“You’re right, sorry,” the Knight of Bennett said apologetically, “I… I just can’t get over what I did, Marshall. I was the one who sent him to be your son. You’re the one who raised him to be the man he is now. I have done so little for him, but he’s been looking after the Bennett Family this entire time.”
Lord Marshall helped the Knight of Bennett get down his horse, “About that, let’s get inside the castle first. There’s something I want to talk to you about. Let’s leave the family topics after we’re done with that. Sounds good?”
At the same time, Zach was watching as his father entered the castle.
“Abel!” Zach shouted, then jumped down his war horse to give Abel a hug.
“Zach!” Abel responded with a hug just as passionate. Zach was his big brother, after all. When he first came to this world, he had always been the one who looked after him. Even now, he still remembered the gifts he received from him.
Zach said after he released his arms from Abel, “Look at how tall you’ve gotten! Wow, you’re even taller than me now! Remember how you’d have to look upward when you talk to me?”
“Yeah, yeah, I do,” Abel nodded and smiled, “And look at you, Zach! You’re a lot stronger now. You’re starting to look just like father!”
“You don’t say, ha!” Zach opened his arms proudly, “I’m an official knight now! Pretty sick, right?”
“Is that a hint that I should give you a reward?” Abel said jokingly. Even if Zach didn’t bring it up, he was already prepared to look for a chance to give out his gift.
Zach quickly shook his head, “Oh, no, no, no! That’s not what I meant! Please, just stop it with the gifts! If it wasn’t for the wedding ceremony, Father would still keep that armor set in the basement!”
“There’s no helping it with that old man, I guess,” Abel sighed and proceeded to walk.
Zach said as he called for a servant to take the horse away, “Anyways, let’s go back home now, Abel. You want to see your old room, don’t you? Father’s been keeping it the same this whole time!”
As soon as the two walked into the castle hall, the first thing Abel saw was the sight of his mother waiting anxiously for him. Her eyes were full of tears, but she didn’t bother to wipe them off. It was like she was afraid that Abel would disappear the moment she did.
“Mother!” Abel left Zach behind and ran up to Nora. When he was close enough to her, he dropped on one of his knees and bowed to her.
Nora reached out her hand to pat Abel on his head. She couldn’t contain it anymore. Rather, she hadn’t been able to since the moment she saw Abel.
“My son! My son!” Nora said as the tears continued to stream down her cheek. Then, when she made sure that this was all real, a genuine smile appeared on her face.
“It must’ve been hard, hasn’t it? All these years out there, fighting and training.”
Abel kept his head low, “I’m so sorry, Mother! I couldn’t find the right time to visit you this whole time.”
Nora was speechless for a moment, “I-… Just get up from the ground first! You’re an earl now. You shouldn’t be kneeling to an old woman like me!”
“I’ll always be a child in front of you, mother,” Abel smiled in response.
“You’re such a sweet child, aren’t you?” Nora smiled, too. She called someone to come close. It was Emily, the girl who married Zach a while back.
Nora went and stood beside Emily, “I almost forgot to introduce her to you. This is Emily. Since you didn’t attend Zach’s wedding, I don’t think the two of you have ever met yet.”
“Good to see you, Earl Abel,” Emily greeted Abel with a standard noble lady’s bow.
Abel said as he returned the bow, “It’s good to see you too, Emily. Please, We’re in the same family now. You can just call me Abel if you want.”
Just before Emily and Nora were about to decline Abel’s request, he quickly took out his gifts from his portal bracelet. They were two bottles of the blue quality “beauty potion,”
“Here, it’s a gift I have for you, Mother,” Abel said as he placed one bottle in Nora’s hand.
“And one for you,” Abel then said as he gave Emily the other bottle.
“And what’s this?” Nora lifted the bottle to have a closer look. At the same time, the bottle continued to glisten in a mysterious, swifting manner. She had never seen anything like this before.
Abel explained, “This is a “beauty potion,” Mother. It’s something I’ve brought back from the elves. If you drink this whole bottle, it will negate all the aging that might have happened to your face. You’ll look the same as when you were in your prime.”
Contrary to what Abel thought, Nora was more concerned about his safety than the magic potion he gave her, “My Spirit!” she cried out, “The elves? What did you do over there? It’s so far and dangerous over there! What were you thinking?”
“Wow, wow, wow!” Abel backed away a little as he saw how upset Nora was, “It’s fine, Mother! I’m still standing here. I’m managing myself pretty well, okay?”
Nora couldn’t help being the mother she was, “I…. Just be careful out there, okay? I know how good you’ve gotten, but just try to lay off the dangerous stuff.”
Abel stuttered for a moment, “I, uh, I…. Okay, Mother! Just drink this potion now, alright?”
When Nora opened the lid of the “beauty potion,” she became a little nervous to see the blue liquid inside. She trusted her child, though, and when Abel looked at her with a smile on his face, she mustered the courage to swallow the liquid down her throat.
Then, with tangible speed, moisture around Nora’s face started to gather up. It was like she was reverting to a younger version of herself. Even the strands of white hair on her head were turned back to its original color.
Obviously, there were a lot of other physical and biological changes that took place. What Abel gave her was a special recipe he’s made. Unlike normal beauty potion, its effects were about several times stronger.
When the blue light around Nora finally disappeared, she looked exactly the same as a young woman in her twenties. Nothing about her seemed superficial or fake, though. It was like she literally became her younger self.
“You, you are younger now, Mother!” Zach screamed out dramatically. His voice was just loud enough to penetrate through the castle walls. Emily was watching, too. As she noticed how insane Abel’s “gift” was, she started gripping the beauty potion in her hand a lot harder.
“Zach!” the voice of the Knight of Bennett came over, “What are you screaming like a madman for?”
When the Knight of Bennett and Lord Marshall came in, they couldn’t believe what they were looking at.
“Zach! Learn some discipline, young m Wait.. wait, wait, wait….”
When the Knight of Bennett saw his wife, he quickly rubbed his eyes with his hands.
“What’s wrong?” Nora asked, her gaze switching between Zach and the Knight of Bennett. When she spoke out, she quickly realized and covered her mouth. She recognized this voice. It was her voice when she was many decades younger.
“Abel, my son!” Nora finally called out the Abel, “This gift… What have you done? This gift is too precious! There’s no way we can afford it!”