Annan stretched lazily in his lounge chair and stayed there, dozing.
With Meditation Arts, it hardly mattered whether he slept, but a proper rest gave him more energy to handle official business.
Now that he had the excuse of listening for believers' calls, he could slack off with a clear conscience.
His left hand absently stroked the princess's long hair as she lay in the lounge chair beside him. Annan recalled the voices that had called to him today.
As usual, he could neither see nor hear these supposed calls clearly.
After being called on for so long, he still could not piece together a complete message, but he could make out the beginnings of phrases like "Ruler of Wealth" and "God of Commerce and Prosperity"...
But did the Lady also go by "God of Betrayal"?
Annan's hand stopped.
Or was that believer cursing?
As he thought that, a soft hand caught his and made him resume stroking.
Annan smiled. "Awake already... Wait, why is it you?"
"Who did you think it was?"
The Elf Mentor sat up, her loose Moonlight Mage Robe tracing a startling curve.
"I thought... Uh, where did you put the princess?"
The Elf Mentor pointed behind her.
The princess lay beneath a tree, covered by a blanket and sleeping soundly.
"Come sleep a little longer." The Elf Mentor reached out with her wicked hand.
In a flash of inspiration, Annan turned aside and rose to his feet.
"The North is in turmoil. As King of the North, how could I indulge myself?"
One of Annan's rules for survival: never be alone with an elf.
After a few hurried steps, he spotted Luoxi's back and felt somewhat reassured.
Luoxi was talking to someone. Snatches of the conversation drifted over on the wind.
"...Lord Annan is sleeping