After that night, Francis went home. His mother, Antoinette, saw him walking down the hallway toward his room. "Darling! Where have you been? We waited for you to eat dinner. You didn't tell us where you were going."
"I already ate. I went to my friend's house and ate there."
"Who is it?"
"I'll let you meet him and visit our house if he's okay with it," Francis said. He kissed his mother goodnight. "Oh, wait. We went to the Sunshine Kingdom, and their Queen Dorothea said to extend her regards to you."
"What? You met Dorothy?"
"Yes, and I'm surprised she knows you. I also found out that you're one of them."
"Come here, darling. It's time you should know about this."
"What is it?"
"Well, darling, I am one of them. I'm not human; I'm a diwana, just like Dorothy. We were friends back then. But when I had the chance to set foot outside that village, I met your father and fell in love with him."
"What? So I'm only half-human?"
"No, my son, you are human. You were born with a body. That's the difference between the diwano. They are spirits who have no body, just like me before. But when the Queen before Dorothy gave us enough power to attain a physical body, our kind was destined to guard the sacred root forest of the Cardinal Tree and serve the Cardinal Dragon. I am not here without them, but I met your father and fell in love with him. We control almost half of the kingdom's influence on the king, and he can never attack the sacred forest anymore without our house's permission."
"Then how about me? How did I get this power?" Francis asked.
His mother took his hand and pointed to a ring. "This ring is your great-grandfather's. It was passed down to your father, but he didn't want to have that power. That's why when you were born, it was put on you to bind with you so it would not be stolen from us and used for evil."
Francis was in awe, shocked, and surprised by it all. "Is that so? I can't believe this." After their conversation, everything was clear. Francis went to his bedroom while Antoinette watched him go, placing her hands on her chest and smiling.
The Labraunth family is one of the richest nobles in the Kingdom of Creyd. They mainly support the kingdom's soldiers financially and are the highest taxpayers. That's why the people of Creyd respect Francis and his family so much. The Labraunth family has the power to overthrow the king if they wish to, but Francisco Labraunth is a civilized man, and he, along with his elegant wife, chose peace over chaos. They have their own castle inside a castle; they are the only nobles who have a castle in the Kingdom of Creyd. Some nobles do, but it's not as sophisticated as the Labraunth castle. In fact, their ancestors helped fund the building of the royal castle. Antoinette has her own garden, not with many flowers but with plants that do not bear flowers. Their castle is covered with vines, and horses graze in their long, wide garden. It would take 300 people to maintain the garden every week.
They mostly fund the businesses in the Kingdom of Creyd; they own almost all the shops and even the mines, not the kingdom, as their ancestors discovered crystalline in the mountains of Sedan.
It was another day in the Kingdom of Creyd. Francis went to Ronaldo's shop. "Oh, there are a lot of customers here!"
"Ohhh, no—it's Francis!" the customers said.
"Hello, everybody! Just eat and eat here every time!" Francis said.
"Yes, sir, this shop is so good. No wonder you keep coming here," a customer said.
Francis smiled at them.
"Here he is again," Ronaldo sighed.
"Good morning, sir!" the four diwano servants greeted him, bowing.
"Hi, Grandpa! How was your night? Did you drink a lot last night?"
"Oh, there he is, my second son! It was just a taste, nothing much."
"What? Second son?" Ronaldo shouted.
"You came here early," Old Migo said.
"I missed the egg omelet my friend served me last time," Francis replied.
"What? He liked it? I only served it to him so he would stop coming here!" Ronaldo sighed. "Come here, sit."
Gab grabbed a chair and offered Francis a seat. "Thank you! How was your first day here?"
"It was great, sir! Master Ronaldo's omelet is good! Even the fried rice!"
"What is that?" one of the diwano asked.
"We don't know what it's made of, but it tastes good," Riel added.
"Shu shu shu, go clean up. Stop entertaining him. Here, eat," Ronaldo said, setting down a plate. "Why are you coming here so often?"
"I want to try something new, and I love what you are serving here," Francis said.
"Tss, go eat it," Ronaldo replied.
Francis ate along with the customers. The four servants were busy with their respective roles: one cooking, one cleaning after the customers left, one washing dishes, and one at the counter taking orders. Old Migo was also assisting them but with minimal actions.
"Grandpa, I have something to tell you. Come here and sit with me."
Old Migo sat down. "What is it, son?" Francis was touched and had "heart eyes" when Old Migo called him son.
"Well, I have something to offer you. I want to help you with your business. Since a lot of Creydians are coming here, why don't you upgrade your eatery shop to the Upper Ring?"
"What? That's impossible. My business isn't that well known, and besides, the rent there is expensive."
"Don't worry about it, Grandpa. It's not much work to do. You're going to take one of our places there. You don't need to pay rent, but I am going to eat at your eatery from now on when you move there."
"What are you talking about? Who's going to move where?" Ronaldo asked.
"Well, Ronaldo, Francis told me we can open our shop in the Upper Ring."
"What? No!" Ronaldo yelled. "Grandma loved this place, and you worked hard to buy this, Grandpa!"
"But your grandma would want this. There are a lot of people coming into our shop, and when we move there, we can accommodate more. Besides, we have Mig, Guel, Gab, and Riel to help us. We're not going to hire any more personnel."
"But, Grandpa…"
"It's fine. Hala would be happy. Even if she's here, you know your grandma. Let's accept his offer; the rent there is free."
"What? Are you serious?" Ronaldo asked, facing Francis.
"Yes, but I'm going to eat with you every day." Francis smirked.
"It's not that different; you've been eating here for free." Old Migo slapped his back.
"Ouch! What was that for?"
"I'm the one who's feeding you and him! Don't even say that!"
"Okay, okay, fine. Do what you want. If we need to go there, then so be it," Ronaldo said while rubbing his back.
"Then that's settled then. When are we going to go there?" Francis asked.
"You can transfer anytime."
"Ohh, that's great. Hey, Mig! Guel! Gab! Riel! After these customers leave, close the shop and prepare; we're moving!"
"Yes, Uncle!"
"Hayy, old man, you're really going to do it. You just agreed to everything." Old Migo smiled at Ronaldo, and so did Ronaldo and Francis as they continued to eat.