The days passed. Corina still had not returned. Maximus had not been found. And in recent days, Malricus had barely seen Fvlvia. They only crossed paths during the pleasant family dinners. Of course, the young man still let his gaze linger on the girl whenever he believed no one would notice.
During the dinners, Malricus joined the conversations with ease and sharp-witted brilliance. Livius grew genuinely fond of him. The young man was drawn into the human world—and into Rome itself.
During these days, Aurelius's parents paid a personal visit to offer their apologies. They were received coldly.
This energized Malricus so much that he wrote a new speech for the Forum that very day—this time directed against the almost flawless arguments of Septimus, the most talented orator.
The fact that the young man was staying in the house of Livius of the Aemilius gens lent weight to his speeches. Even without using his demonic power, people paid attention to him. As a result, Malricus himself began to take greater care with his speeches, spending more time at the Forum—willingly and with focus.
Day by day, his popularity grew.
That day he was dazzling. With elegant ease, he swept away Septimus's nearly perfect arguments. And yet, this very success led to a friendship between the two gifted orators. Septimus was the first to congratulate him.
He was glad to have finally found a true challenger in intellectual duels.
That morning as well, Malricus diligently worked on his newest speech. He no longer wandered the city at night searching for Maximus. Bato's efforts, too, were now focused on the Forum.
Each morning, he recited his speeches to his clever servant, discussing with him both the strongest and the weakest arguments.
That morning, Malricus was once again seated in the garden. He was so deeply absorbed in writing that he failed to notice the beauty around him.
"Bato will be coming out any moment. And I still haven't finished my speech," he grumbled to himself.
From the corner of his eye, he noticed someone turning toward the garden.
"Bato is coming," he thought.
Smiling, he turned toward the approaching figure and raised his arm in greeting.
Then, more carefully, he lowered it again.
"Well done," he thought in shock.
It was not Bato who had entered the garden—but Fvlvia.
She did not find the greeting smile and wave intrusive. She returned the gesture warmly and walked straight toward Malricus.
Now Malricus was glad for his mistake.
"My affairs in Rome are truly going well," he thought with satisfaction.
All the while, he made an effort to maintain a politely indifferent expression. During his rhetorical training, he had learned the art of pretense well.
"May I sit down?" Fvlvia asked kindly.
Malricus nearly said something rude—but thankfully restrained himself in time. Fvlvia would not have appreciated it if the young orator had offered his lap as a seat.
He was already pleased that she sat so close to him. And now that she was examining his writing, she had a reason to lean even closer. He would have most liked to put his arm around her and kiss her neck.
"Are you delivering it today?" she asked at last, in a casual, conversational tone.
"Yes."
"I'll listen to it at the Forum," she promised, before continuing on toward her mother at the far end of the garden.
Malricus turned back to his writing. He could not gather enough self-control to avoid looking back one more time—
Straight into Fvlvia's eyes.
♡
That glance stole long minutes from his writing. Then, more slowly than he would have liked, Malricus composed himself and returned to his work.
"The last thing I need is for today's speech to go badly."
By the time Bato reached the garden at the usual hour, Malricus was already rereading his finished speech with satisfaction.
Bato especially praised the conclusion. That section was filled with color, nuance, and mood—born from Fvlvia's gaze.
Then they walked down to the Forum together.
As always, Aulus pushed ahead of Malricus. Today, Malricus did not mind at all. Fvlvia had not yet arrived at the Forum.
"The worse an orator someone is, the more they try to irritate those more talented than themselves," Septimus muttered.
As they listened to Aulus's weak speech—which was particularly dull that day and delivered in a lethargic manner—Bato half-jokingly suggested:
"We should do something about that young man."
"I know exactly what," Septimus replied.
Malricus expected a good prank. He exchanged a sly, conspiratorial glance with Bato.
"We should invite him to the philosophical school. The Master will be returning in a few days."
Both of them were surprised by Septimus's idea.
"I'd like you to come as well. He always welcomes talent."
Bato lowered his head. After all, he was a slave.
"You'll come with Malricus. The Master seeks talent. He will teach you as well."
"Aulus isn't talented," Malricus remarked honestly.
"Perhaps something will rub off on him at the school," Septimus replied with a smile, "and afterward he'll write better speeches."
"Well, that's true," Malricus thought. "At least he won't torment the crowd with such dreadful speeches anymore."
With ceremonial bows, they thanked their friend for the invitation. At once, Malricus realized he now had a compelling reason to remain in Rome.
"My affairs are going well," he thought.
Bato was astonished. A philosophical school—for him?
"Why not, after all?" he thought.
"Your invitation honors me," he said aloud at last.
Like Malricus, he bowed formally.
Meanwhile, Aulus finished his speech. Septimus stepped forward to congratulate him.
Aulus acknowledged it with a conceited nod and rejected the invitation to the philosophical school with such arrogance that Septimus—the talented orator—felt embarrassed on his behalf.
"Well, not everyone is ready for the Master," he concluded quietly near his friends.
Because of mutual politeness, they missed their chance to take the platform. Someone else was already speaking.
"That's what happens to those who are well-mannered," Bato muttered cheerfully.
"Not like Aulus," Malricus added.
"We really must do something about Aulus," Septimus persisted.
"I'll send a bit of hypnosis his way tomorrow so he forgets to come to the Forum for days," the demon thought.
Malricus was the first to step forward and deliver his speech. The crowd listened now not because of demonic tricks, but because of his genuine talent. More and more people knew that the young man staying with Livius of the Aemilius gens was worth paying attention to—just like Septimus.
From the platform, he had a clear view of the crowd.
And he saw Fvlvia.
She was standing to the right of the rostra with her sister and Claudia.
Very close to him.
♡
Fvlvia listened to the young orator with pride. A guest in their house—enhancing its prestige with his intelligence and wit.
Not like Aurelius.
As if inspired by Minerva herself, Fvlvia thought of Aurelius at the very moment her fiancé's litter stopped beside the crowd.
"By the gods! Aurelius!" she whispered.
Claudia took her friend's arm supportively.
"Come, let's go over to Bato and Septimus," Aemilia suggested hurriedly.
She expected that Aurelius would not make a scene in front of them. If her sister was angry with her fiancé, she would stand by her.
Malricus noticed the girls' unease as well. They hurried far too suddenly toward Bato and Septimus.
"Perhaps some ill-mannered youth made an improper remark to them," he thought, and continued his speech.
Then he noticed that the girls kept glancing toward a litter.
"It must be Aurelius," he immediately deduced.
He had seen the young patrician at the Forum before. Until now, they had never been introduced. Malricus still did not know that this youth was his romantic rival—Aurelius.
He frowned when he saw the patrician heading straight toward the girls.
Malricus wanted to hear the conversation. He decided it best to conclude his speech quickly today.
Fvlvia turned her head away in silence when Aurelius stopped beside her.
"You can see that Fvlvia does not wish to speak with you," Malricus said—perhaps a bit too firmly.
Inwardly, he was amused by the patrician's expression. The young man had to choose. If he spoke to Fvlvia, a public scandal would erupt—and Malricus himself would ensure it. If he did not, who knew when he would next have the chance to speak with her.
When Bato and Septimus also positioned themselves in front of Fvlvia, the young man chose a quiet retreat. He decided it would be better to listen to the speakers from much farther away today.
Fvlvia's eyes flashed with anger. After writing that letter, after Livius had banned him from the house for an indefinite time—after all that—he still had the audacity to approach her at the Forum.
"Let's go home," Claudia suggested.
They would not have been able to listen calmly to Septimus's speech anyway.
Malricus and Bato accompanied them as an escort.
"We'll talk about that school tomorrow," Malricus said in farewell to his friend.
♡
Livius was at home. He gladly received the news that Septimus had invited the young guest staying with them to a philosophical school. He also saw nothing objectionable in Bato accompanying him.
He was less pleased that Aurelius had approached Fvlvia at the Forum despite his prohibition.
"Thank you for standing by my daughter. I had not planned to, but I will write to Aurelius's parents about this."
Before carrying out this threatening promise, he had a few kind words for Malricus.
"I'm glad to see you beginning to find friends in Rome."
Fvlvia was grateful as well.
Claudia, of course, also wished to enhance the success of her own reading evenings. People would be more inclined to attend if word spread that even the new, talented orator had joined their circle.
"Perhaps you would all like to come to us this evening," she suggested.
Malricus was very pleased by the invitation.
"My affairs in Rome are improving more and more," he thought.
It meant spending the entire evening near Fvlvia—without having to fear the strict gazes of Livius and Tullia. The whole evening would be theirs—perhaps even the night at last.
"Only let the girls accept the invitation."
Once again, he concealed his true thoughts well.
"I would like you to bring today's speech with you," Claudia added, turning to him again.
Malricus tried to read the girls' expressions. All of them were waiting for his answer.
"Thank you for the invitation."