CHAPTER 259: JULIO’S TALENT IS ORGANIZATION

Julio rushed out to start assigning houses, noting the intended farmsteads, and guiding woodcutters and hunters to the surviving homes with the best amenities.

The man might have started with an accounting base, but he was surprisingly capable as a household manager.

The Royal Guard was also helping with directions and getting everyone sorted in the town.

They had a few conflicts of interest, as they had gotten more than one of many of the trades, simply because the Merchant’s Guild hadn’t asked about the other trades in the family, other than that of the head.

From what Dominic had gathered, their home region had been in a bad way even before the war, thanks to mismanagement and punitive taxes levied upon them.

Finally, a group of women, ranging from an ancient crone who was likely more Swamp Hag than human, to a young girl with bright purple eyes, came up to greet Dominic.

If the Witch Coven was trying to be discrete, they weren’t doing a good job of it.

However, when the Royal Guards greeted them, they didn’t quite make contact with the Witches, and none of them seemed to notice the odd appearances.

They had disguised themselves with an illusion, but excluded him from it, so he knew who they were.

"Ladies, I have the perfect house for you. Assuming that you are looking for something more cozy and less sprawling." He greeted the group.

The old Hag smiled, showing him a mouth full of crooked yellow teeth.

"That would be wonderful, Your Grace. With my Alchemy skills, it’s better not to be in the village itself. The scent gets to people, you see." She explained.

"Alexis, if you don’t mind, I will show these ladies to the spot I have in mind. It’s a bit out of the way, and I don’t want them to get lost." Dominic explained.

"Of course. I will settle the others and update the map. Do a walkthrough of the outlying homes on your way back, just to be sure there aren’t any arguments about housing outside the village." She agreed.

Dominic motioned for the Witches to follow him, and began walking toward the river, deep into the woods, where very few houses had been before the region had been abandoned.

But toward his old family home.

"I think that this spot should be precisely what you are looking for. It’s a bit nostalgic for me, so I might drop in to visit once in a while. But it’s got room for five, a full magitech restroom and shower with a good well, and a full stone basement to work in without risking anyone coming in and disrupting your potion making." Dominic explained.

"Was this where the old coven lived?" The Hag asked.

Dominic shook his head. "The old coven were Garden Witches, and they lived in town. This, my new friend, is my own childhood’s family home.

I thought about leaving it empty for nostalgia’s sake. But it’s really the only house remote enough for you to live your lives without using your disguise magic. And it’s the only one outside of town that won’t need extensive renovations for the coven. Stone basements aren’t common here, most of the homes are too close to the river level."

The youngest of the Witches walked inside and began opening everything. Doors, cabinets, the toilet seat.

"It looks like a good house to me." She declared, then gave the incinerating toilet a second look.

That contraption looked like it could be dangerous if it malfunctioned.

"The furniture is yours to keep. I took all the family heirlooms out, though. So, if you need anything made, let me know. Most of the other houses came fully stocked." Dominic explained.

The old woman shook her head. "We brought everything from our old house. All we need is a good roof and a Lord who doesn’t ask questions that he doesn’t want the answer to."

Dominic chuckled. "Just don’t cause any trouble. As I recall, Most of the Swamp Fae like to eat wayward humans, and that’s not going to work for me."

The old woman made a disgusted face. "I would take offence to that, simply for the culinary disaster that is an unwashed villager. But I get your point. We’re all Dark Fae blooded to some degree, but none of us got the impulsively evil tendencies.

I won’t blame you for keeping a close eye on us, I just hope that you will give us a proper chance."

"If I wasn’t willing, I wouldn’t have led you to my own home. I can smell the nature magic and potions on you, so I’m entrusting you with this spot. If you need healing magic or a midwife, ask the Troll who lives three houses down, past the Manor. He’s our healer, and his wife has experience in the field."

The witches quietly cheered as they went in to explore the house, then celebrated when they found the stairs to the basement. The house wasn’t huge, but the underground work space had a magitech fan that would pull potion fumes outside.

A bit of clever engineering that Dominic hadn’t seen the need to remove.

It wasn’t magitech, unless you put a magitech fan in it. Just a clever use of the chimney of the stove overhead to suck the air up.

"Thank you, Lord Dominic. This is a lovely home. We do have one last thing to request.

Only Betty can pass for human, and she’s not very social most of the time. Instead of keeping our disguises up, we would like to send our potions to the Estate for you to sell." The old woman pleaded.

Betty was the youngest one, with the glowing purple eyes. That was pretty conspicuous, but not so bad that she would be immediately outed as Dark Fae. The whole category were deemed to be dangerously unstable, and even in Wavemates under the Dragon King, they had been shunned.

"Alright. I will take care of the sales for you. Let me know if there is anything that you need, but the garden is a full acre, and there is more clear space if you need it for herbs." Dominic agreed.

"We will. Now, this is for you, a welcoming gift in lieu of a home price. I see that you’ve got Royal Paladins, which will help with healing, so take this gem instead. It’s a favourite of mine." The old Witch insisted, then pressed a spell gem into his hand and turned to walk inside and sit down.

Dominic chuckled, then waved goodbye and returned to the estate.

With a whole new group of Witches in the old house, he could begin to let the old memories fade.

Though, he was certainly going to have to go back.

That Swamp Witch had given him a Spell Gem of [Bee Swarm], and anyone who thought that attacking people with a swarm of bees was peak magic was bound to be a fun person to talk to.