After returning to the estate, Carissa discussed the matter of hiring his senior guild members with Travis.


    Travis''s first question was: "How much are you offering?"


    Carissa knew she wouldn''t easily persuade him without a substantial financial incentive. Only by offering more money could she possibly get his master to relent.


    She replied, "I''d like them to stay until the child is safely born and reaches their Lunar Blessing Ceremony, which will be a few months. If you send two people, I''ll offer a total of one thousand silver coins. How does that sound?"


    Travis raked a hand through his hair, considering the offer. "It sounds eptable, but I must immediately write a letter. Does His Highness have someone specifically for delivering letters? We must ensure the letter reaches my master as quickly as possible."


    Carissa smiled. "Please make sure to write the letter as quickly as possible, then."


    One thousand silver coins was indeed a significant amount.


    Travis'' master forbade her apprentices from leaving the mountain because working as female bodyguards for high-ranking families only paid a meager two silver coins per month, and they had to endure mistreatment.


    Now, protecting a duchess would not involve such mistreatment, nor would it require other tasks-just ensuring she wasn''t harmed and overseeing her pregnancy. For just a few months of work, two people would earn one thousand silver coins. Surely, his master would be tempted.


    The day after the letter was sent, Samuel indeed arrived at Hell Monarch Estate with two attendants. He specifically asked to see Carissa.


    He came only after Rafael had left for work, which showed he wasn''t entirely dismissive of others. He just thought that Carissa, as a once-divorced woman, was easy to bully.


    However, the gatekeeper was taken aback by his arrogance and immediately reported Samuel''s identity to Jacob.


    Jacob stood at the entrance, his demeanor polite but his words icy, "Either leave immediately or face a beating."


    Behind Jacob were several guards, all brandishing whips. By the time Carissa arrived, Samuel had already left in disgrace.


    Upon hearing Jacob''s report, Violet felt quite regretful. She had two ps she wanted to deliver to Samuel, but hadn''t been able to. It was very frustrating.


    Since that day, he had not appeared again, which made Carissa worry that he might direct his anger towards Leona.


    A week or soter, Travis'' two senior guild members arrived on horseback.


    Upon hearing that they had arrived, Travis asked, "You came by horse?"


    "We rented them."


    Both senior guild members were dressed simrly, in thin cotton jackets with short, coarse fabric in a


    stone-blue color. They were around twenty years old, but their


    appearance was quite aged, withOwned by N?velDrama.Org.


    rough skin from dailybor.


    Travis led his senior guild members to meet Carissa. As soon as Carissa saw them, she recognized them immediately and promptly saluted in greeting. "Leah, na, it''s good to see you."


    Violet quickly followed suit, offering her greetings as well.


    The two young women had been taken in by Travis'' master. Leah was found in a basket, and na was found with nothing but a stone lock in her possession. Therefore, Leah''s birth name was actually "Basket". But as she grew up, someone started to call her Leah, and everyone followed suit as "Basket" was an unappealing name.


    na''s name meant rock, and there had been no changes in her name.


    "Hello, Carissa. Hello, Vivi," the two young women greeted with a dignified yet respectful demeanor, not feeling any inferiority just because they had entered a royal residence. Leah asked, "Has Shit Stick caused you any issues? If so, please let us know, and I will deal with him."


    Travis quickly covered her mouth. "Leah, I''m the training instructor here. You can''t call me that, or the soldiers will refuse to follow my orders, and I won''t receive my instructor''s stipend."


    Money was still important, so Leah changed her approach.


    "Alright, I got it, Travis."


    Travis'' nickname was Rod.


    Carissa and Violet were puzzled. Why was Travis now being called "Shit Stick" instead of just "Rod"?


    They learned that after receiving a reward, Travis had bought many cosmetics and had been reprimanded by his master for being a "shitty stick", thus earning the nickname "Shit Stick".