Hugo pushed the doors open. The dining hall stretched across the wing. Wall mirrors caught the sunlight and bounced it across the ceiling. Raydall smelled roasted meat. He saw no dark corners due to the shining gemlamps.
Four tables filled the space. They were bolted to the stone floor. Servants walked down the aisles carrying iron pots and set clay bowls down at equal intervals.
Raydall found a bench and sat. He leaned over his bowl. A thick stew filled it to the rim. Blocks of beef and root floated inside the broth. A servant dropped a bread loaf next to his hand.
Vendis sat beside him. The inner-ring children took the opposite benches. No one fought for portions. Everyone received the same amount. Raydall picked up his wooden spoon. "This porridge is really good," Raydall beamed.
"It is," Vendis seconded as he gulped down a spoonful that had bits of beef.
Noren didn't speak; he just wolfed down some bread and spread butter over it.
"Wow! We even get butter!" Raydall exclaimed, a little too loudly. The other people in the hall gave him looks.
Most of the people eating breakfast wore much better clothes than him, and they muttered under their breath.
Aerwyna suddenly entered. Everyone looked to her immediately, and there was an abrupt hush.
"Oh, look!" Aerwyna said in a high-pitched tone as she beckoned to an attendant. "Ezra's playmates are here!"
"Hello, everyone," Aerwyna said, her voice sing-song. "You're here to play with my little Ez, right?" she asked, half giggling.
Some of the children's mouths hung open for a beat. Raydall was so startled his spoon stopped dead in the air. He had heard rumors about the "Ice Queen" of Bren. She was a stunning beauty who could freeze your veins in a heartbeat if you so much as glanced at her the wrong way.
The current Lady Blackfyre was breaking the image he held in his mind.
"Oh my, you children must be sleepy. I don't think you heard what I said." Aerwyna shook her head.
Hugo answered for them. "Lady Blackfyre," he bowed. "These are the children that passed the assessment and are here with matters pertaining to the press."
"Yes, correct. Ezra's playmates," Aerwyna nodded, smiling.
Hugo was stumped for a moment.
"Ezra hasn't woken up yet, okay? He is a growing boy. He'll be up in a bit. I saw Sir Galwell fetching him," Aerwyna said with a nod.
"Also," Aerwyna turned to the servants, "why are they feeding you this? This food is for the clerks!"
"Maids!" Aerwyna commanded. "Get the potted meat, the roast pheasants, and the fruits. Don't serve them this food that was cobbled together. Get them actual food. The eggs, the soft bread, alright?"
"Yes, Madame," the servants bowed and shuffled away, scurrying to get the breakfast Aerwyna wanted them to have.
"You children treat my Ez alright, okay?" Aerwyna's smile kept beaming. "I know he is a handful sometimes, but he is a good boy." Aerwyna paused. "At least he's less stubborn now," she said, that last part more to herself than to anyone else.
"Oh..." Aerwyna pouted. "No replies? Don't worry. I don't bite, alright?" Aerwyna continued to smile. "You can talk, no need to be shy. You, what's your name?"
"I... I am Noren, m-my Lady," Noren's voice trembled slightly.
"See, that wasn't hard to say," Aerwyna giggled. "I was told that you boys were smart, yes?"
"Well, uhh... we... we passed the test, m-my Lady," Noren replied.
Hugo wanted to say something but refrained; he looked like he was scared out of his wits. He had never seen the Lady this enthusiastic.
"Very good! Yes, only the best can play with my Ez! You boys are very smart. I also hear of you from my Ez. He talks about you over dinner."
"Us?" Noren wore a shocked look.
"Yes, he keeps on praising you. He tells me a lot about your playtime during Helio."
Everyone at the table had looks of disbelief. A few of them scratched the backs of their heads.
"If you are Noren, then you are the child who is shy but has everything organized, right? You like books too."
Noren's cheeks flushed, but he nodded.
"Oh look, here is the proper food." Aerwyna motioned to the servants and gestured where to put the plates.
Delmon then entered with the other children in tow. They were very prim and orderly, like the decorum had been baked into their bones. Their faces were grim and solemn. They entered the room and bowed their heads in unison when they saw Aerwyna.
"My Lady," the boys bowed, and the girls curtsied.
Aerwyna nodded in acknowledgement. "Alright, settle in, take your seats."
"You are here to play with Ezra too, right?"
The children stiffened their posture. Some of them looked toward Delmon for help. Delmon just nodded.
Aerwyna continued scanning the children, hoping for an answer.
A boy who was of average height decided to step forward and answer. "We have passed the Literacy Aptitude Exam, my Lady, and we are here for the promised apprenticeship."
"Yes, exactly! You are Ezra's new playmates along with them, right?"
"Come on, come on, just eat. Together with the others. Ezra will be up in a bit, okay?"
The children looked confused but bowed. "Yes, my Lady."
All of them filed into a neat line and took their seats on the benches opposite Raydall and the others. The inner-ring children had a systematic way of eating. When the maids set down the new plates of potted meat and eggs, they didn't lunge or gobble up the food. They placed their napkins on their laps. They held their wooden spoons with just their fingertips, lifting small, measured bites to their mouths. No one chewed with their mouth open. No one made a sound.
Raydall looked down at his own spoon. He was gripping it in his entire fist. He glanced sideways at Noren, who had butter smeared on his chin, and Vendis, who was currently tearing a piece of soft bread in half with his teeth.
It was the first time today that Raydall felt self-conscious. But Noren and Vendis didn't seem to care.
Raydall quickly wiped his mouth with the back of his sleeve. He tried to mimic the boy sitting across from him, loosening his grip on his spoon and trying to take a smaller bite of the roast pheasant. The meat was so rich and tender that it melted against his tongue. He almost closed his eyes, but he forced himself to chew quietly.
Raydall kept on glancing at the inner-ring children. Their habits were something he wanted to study.
Aerwyna spoke again, addressing the children as a whole. "You know, children, I was so happy when my Ezra found playmates." She paused and tilted her head, trying to meet their eye level. "When he was much younger, well... let's just say he seemed to act older than his age."
She wore a contemplative look. "When I heard he started meeting with you, I realized he was finally acting his age. When I learned you would visit every day save for Helio, I was even more overjoyed."
A tinge of grief shadowed her face. "My Ez has been through a lot, you see. Just seeing you children here fills me with confidence that he can lead a happy life. I'm just glad he is starting to act his age. At least now he is looking for playmates."
Aerwyna muttered the last part more to herself than to anyone.
Aerwyna stayed a while longer. Once she confirmed all the food was served, she bid her farewells.
"Alright, it looks like you children have settled in," Aerwyna said, smiling. "I'm going to have to do my duties today too, okay? Have fun, ta-ta." Aerwyna gestured with her hands. She went out of the corridor with her retinue in tow.
A few minutes after Aerwyna left, the children had finished their food.
Some of the passing clerks gave the outer-ring boys a glare; however, they gave the inner-ring children a curt nod of approval.
Raydall noticed this but kept it to himself.
"That was good," Vendis said, his face completely satisfied. "I have never had roast pheasant before. You were right, Raydall. Food in the castle is good."
Raydall nodded. "Yeah, I told you, didn't I? It was good not being late and all."
Noren didn't say anything, but he smiled and burped, then patted his belly, content.
"You should be more respectful to Lady Blackfyre, you know," said the inner-ring child who had answered Aerwyna earlier.
"Justus, Lady Blackfyre didn't seem to mind. She was very lively, right?" Raydall answered, his brows scrunched and his tone hostile.
Justus snorted. "It isn't proper manners."
Raydall started mouth an argument but was stopped by Hugo's voice.
"Boys, don't fight," Hugo said, stopping the discussion. "It was a failure on my part as your instructor." He scratched his cheek. "I forget that outer-ring children aren't accustomed to our procedures. We are brought up knowing these things. They aren't. Just be kind to them."
Hugo sighed. "I think I shall give the outer-ring boys proper instruction on manners after hours."
Ezra, Galwell, and Dynham came into the dining hall. Between the two massive knights walked a four-year-old boy.
"Lord Ezra," Hugo said, his tone entirely serious.
"Oh, hey guys," Ezra waved.
"Lord Ezra," all of the children said at once.
"Oh, I see you've eaten. It's alright, no need to wait for me," Ezra said. "You guys can go to the Press Office in advance."
"We can still take seconds," Raydall said, snickering.
Ezra chuckled as well. "Fine, let's just all of us eat together."
"Hmm, maybe I should just brief you guys here rather than the Press Office," Ezra contemplated. "I guess we can talk while having breakfast. Let's just call it a breakfast meeting? Eh?"
Some of them looked bewildered, but the others nodded.
"Alright," Ezra said as he took a bite of bread with butter on it. "First off, you guys understand what we are going to do here, right?"
"We are to help with the presses, Lord Ezra," Justus said.
"Yes, that," Ezra said. He tore a piece off his buttered bread. "And I'm kinda actually cheating. I'd like to think you guys are a scholarship program paid by the state."
He popped the bread into his mouth. The children watched him in silence as he chewed.
Ezra swallowed and wiped his fingers on a napkin. "You could easily find employment right now. But I'd rather have you as state assets. It's a waste of talent to put you on basic jobs."
He picked up a wooden cup and took a quick drink.
"You'll work for half a day," Ezra continued, setting the cup down. "Tops. Mostly, I wanted you guys here to learn."
"You see, we are building the lab. Remember our discussion last Helio?"
All of them nodded.
"Yeah, we'll get a much better place where we can call our own." Ezra shifted on his bench and leaned forward.
"The lab is going to be a bunch of things." He held up his small hand, ticking the items off on his fingers. "It will have an office, it will have classrooms. It will have a library and also, of course, a press punching station."
He dropped his hand and reached for another piece of bread. "We'll get to have all sorts of fun there. But that won't be till much later."
Ezra tore the crust off. "Maybe a year more. But I think by that time you'll all have your knowledge expanded."
Everyone just tilted their heads in confusion.
"Ehem," Ezra cleared his throat and wiped his mouth with his napkin. "Sorry, I think I was rambling. I'm just happy that the new building is getting built."
He set his napkin down and looked around the table, meeting their eyes one by one.
"Anyway, while your purpose here is the employment, what I want you guys to focus on is your studies. In the afternoon, we are going to study more stuff. Since you guys have learned the basics of arithmetic, I am going to teach you more advanced things."
Ezra picked up his wooden spoon and twirled it slowly between his fingers.
"We are going to start with science and also deconstruct Euclid's Elements," he said. He tapped the spoon against his palm. "First, we will try to find practical applications and actual experiments so that you can understand intuitively."
He set the spoon down with a soft clack against the wood. "So, think of your main job as actually learning stuff, alright? In the future, you guys can really help me a lot."
"How?" Raydall asked.
"In the future, you guys will be more acquainted with the scientific method and critical thinking. I will need more leaders who can understand the scientific process, and you guys will be the backbone of that."
Everyone had bewildered looks.
"Hmm, how do I put it in simpler terms?" Ezra scrunched his brows. He rested his elbows on the table and clasped his small hands together.
"You see, right now our whole system has gaps." He swept a hand toward the wide dining hall, then back toward the outer-ring children. "I want to be able to build a better environment for everyone, not just for some people."
Ezra dropped his hand and leaned in. Raydall and the others mirrored his movement, leaning over their empty bowls to listen.
"If you learn the same things from the books I give you, I promise you, you will see marvels beyond your wildest imagination." Ezra held their gaze, his voice dropping quiet and steady. "And you will think, as you are now, that these things are magic."
Raydall didn't exactly understand what Ezra meant, but he wanted to believe.
"You should be taught how to think, not what to think. Right now what you need the most is a fundamental understanding of how the world works." Ezra then looked at a gemlamp hanging on the wall. "Well, at least, enough that you won't need magic to explain a lot of things."
"What do you mean, Lord Ezra?" Justus asked.
"I feel like everyone is leaning on a crutch." Ezra now hopped down from his seat. "You see, sometimes when you ask people why something is, they just answer 'magic'." Ezra shook his head.
"There are a lot of smart people in Fulmen. The problem is they don't think, because they already have something in their mind that fills the gap."
"A placeholder," Raydall said.
Ezra wore a shocked look, but then nodded.
Raydall scratched his cheek. "I... I heard you use that word when you taught us about the zero mark. The shape that holds the empty space in a number."
"Exactly," Ezra said, a genuine smile breaking across his face. "When people here don't know why a rock falls or why a fire burns, they just answer 'magic'. It acts like a zero. It fills the blank so they stop looking for the real answer."
Ezra looked around the table, meeting their eyes.
"The books I give you will teach you how to remove the placeholder. We are going to look for the real answers." Ezra clapped his hands once.
"But how do we know that what the book says is real?" Vendis asked.
"That is a very good question!" his smile now reaching ear to ear.
"That is why we will use the scientific method!" Ezra said, looking up at them.
"To prove this for ourselves and not just what the book is telling us... we will get to explore how the world works." He swept his small arm out in a wide arc.
"One proof at a time," Ezra continued, bringing his hands together and tapping one small fist on top of the other. "And once we know how things work, we can use the principles as building blocks to shape and move the world the way we want as long as we obey the rules it has set."