“Lark... I’m going to ask you something now, and I’d like you to answer it as best you can. I promise, no matter how you answer, I won’t be upset. I just need a friendly ear.”
Her smile once again made his heart flutter, which was both hot and annoying. “I have had a number of strange requests in my time, lord. Ask anything you wish.”
“In your opinion. Based on what you’ve seen in your time. If I can kill people and not feel guilty about it, and I can see people die and not feel sad about it, is that normal?”
“Were these people whom you killed trying to hurt you or those you care about?”
She hadn’t so much as batted an eye at his question. “Yes, I suppose. The people I’ve killed were trying to kill me or others I wanted to protect.”
“And these people you saw die, how well did you know them?”
“Not that well. Not at all, mostly. Except a few.”
“And would you say the deaths of those you knew personally hurt more, or less, than those you do not know?”
Drake considered how he felt about Thak, the zarovian Suck had killed. A zarovian who loved hitting things, and a loyal soldier who’d served him and died protecting him. “It hurts more. But still... I’m doing all right. More than all right. Should I be?”
She shrugged. “Could I suggest, Lord Gloomwood, that you are simply overwhelmed?”
He was immediately intrigued. “What does that mean?”
“A person in your position lives every moment under the threat of assassination and with the weight of protecting a manor full of people always in his thoughts. The situations you encounter every day are disturbingly intense. You see far more death than most.”
“And that makes it okay to not feel sad about it?”
“It means that you simply may have so many intense experiences washing over you at once that you may not be capable of feeling... well, much of anything in any moment. Or perhaps too much. I have only known you for a day, so please forgive me if I speculate.”
“You’re forgiven,” Drake said quickly. “And please speculate.”
“After seeing how you treat your thralls, I suspect you are simply too focused on protecting them and yourself in this current storm to worry about anyone outside your manor. I have spoken with many who face intense situations every day. Sailors. Soldiers. Mercenaries. Some have expressed similar concerns to yours, and they do not face all you face.”
Drake considered her words in silence for a moment. He appreciated that she didn’t add any others. He swirled his drink and looked into what remained. “So you’re saying it’s normal that I don’t necessarily feel sad when I see innocent people get murdered in front of me, or guilty after I kill people trying to hurt me or my people.”
“I am suggesting that you cannot process such emotions due to the weight of your position and the frequency of these events. I would suggest you not worry about the intensity of your emotions until you enjoy a period of relative calm, one where you can reflect and think without the constant worry of protecting yourself, your manor, and your thralls.”
Drake managed a chuckle, downed the rest of his drink, and put the empty mug down on the table. “I don’t think that’s happening any time soon.”
“Then I would not trouble yourself. I would suggest how you feel today is as normal as anyone can feel when forced to deal, every day, with the situations you encounter.”
Drake sighed and smiled. “That actually does make me feel better.”
“Then... I am very glad I could be of service.” She raised her mug to her lips once more, her eyes never leaving his.
A heavy knock sounded on the door to his chambers. With a curse Emily stumbled out of the kitchen, then glanced his way in obvious alarm. “There’s a knock!”
Drake stared at her. “I heard.” So she had been listening the whole time.
“Shall I get the door, lord?” Emily asked innocently.
He scowled at her. “Yes. Why don’t you go do that.”
As Emily walked to the door, Drake sighed and glanced at Lark. “Sorry about her. Anyway... it’s almost sunset. You’re been great, and, um...”
“You may call upon my services at any time,” Lark said softly. “For any reason.”
He couldn’t help but grin as he basked in her warm smile. “I just might.”
Emily returned wearing an annoyed expression. “It was simply a courier from the royal court, lord. She had a message.”
Drake nodded. He waited a beat. When Emily said nothing else, he added “What was the message?”
“It was a message for you, lord.”
Lark rose immediately. “I shall take my leave.”
Oh. Right. It wouldn’t be great for Emily to repeat a secret manor lord message in front of Drake’s currently employed courtesan, even if she was sworn to secrecy and all that. He was buzzed. Still, it was awful late for a young woman to travel home alone.
“Can I send an escort with you?” Drake asked.
Lark smiled at him. “I will be fine, lord. Thank you for asking, but I know this city well.”
“Okay, cool. So... thanks again.”
She offered a half bow, rose, nodded to Emily, and headed for the door. After she closed it behind her, Emily glanced at him and shook her head in visible disappointment.
“That, lord, is what I would call a missed opportunity.”
“Thanks for sharing,” Drake said. “What was the message?”
“The cabal is now officially canceled, however, the royal court requests that all manor lords remain in the capital until the inquisitors charged with investigating today’s incident are satisfied they have both apprehended the culprit and confident it cannot happen again.”
“In other words, don’t leave town until we know who summoned all those fish people.” Drake sighed. “I wish they could just go arrest Lord Redbow.”
Emily perked up. “You have proof it was Lord Redbow?”
“All I have is a cocky and annoying wink, which is the problem. That sneaky fuck probably had whatever magic or artifact he used to summon those fishmen and murder Lord Blackmane ready to go long before the cabal started, but I don’t know how we could prove that. All I’m certain of right now is he did it to stop the inquisition, which means he’s almost certainly the one with the thrall who can change what people see.”
Emily nodded as if all of that made perfect sense. “What if we simply killed him?”
Drake was buzzed, but not that buzzed. This sounded a bit less crazy than Emily’s normal suggestions. “Wouldn’t we get arrested for doing that?”
“If we attacked him in the capital while the royal court said not to attack him, then yes, of course they would be upset,” Emily said calmly. “But once this business is concluded, we could ambush him on the road out of the capital. I bet you could even use the blood you got from that assassin to suck his blood out through silverweave!”
Was she right? When Suck had used his blood-sucking rarity, it had been powerful enough to drop a person even through silverweave. Since Drake burnished rarities, that suggested that if he were to absorb Suck’s power, he would be even more powerful. If he could get close enough to Lord Redbow, he could straight up murder the man.
But what then? Would the noble court censure him? He’d have to ask Samuel, but he suspected a direct attack would be frowned upon. Lord Proudglade could use his shock spear rarity to blow Drake to smithereens if he wanted, but he hadn’t. He’d sent assassins instead.
Also, if Redbow died at Drake’s hands, whoever he had chosen as his successor... if he had one... could be an even more dangerous assassin with even more reason to kill him. That meant killing Lord Redbow might not even solve anything. The next lord could be worse.
Finally, thanks to the stupid way debts passed on here, he’d saddle his successor... who might be Samuel... with the “Lord Gloomwood killed Lord Redbow!” debt. As much as he liked annoying Samuel in casual conversation, he didn’t want to fuck the man over in that way.
Drake needed to confirm the details with Samuel, but it seemed like manor lords didn’t directly fight other manor lords except in specific cases, like an honor duel. What if he challenged Lord Redbow to one? Could that resolve it? Another question for his spymaster.
A man who he wouldn’t see until he told him it was okay to return.
Drake rose. “Emily? We’re going out.”
“Of course, lord!” She smiled. “We can still catch Lark if we move quickly.”
Drake rolled his eyes. “We’re not going to get me laid. We’re going to speak with Lord Skybreak, and then we’re going to use the mirror I gave her to contact Lydia and Samuel.”
Emily nodded thoughtfully. “I suppose that’s also important.”
He’d already given Nicole and Valentia the rest of the night off. With the capital guards on high alert due to the fish people incident, he doubted he’d need an escort at all. Still, Emily would be upset if he left without her, and Lydia would be really upset if she found out. So Drake grabbed his cloak, adjusted his silverweave, and headed out the door.
With Emily walking close at his side like a very nervous mother hen... with a giant axe... they passed a number of capital guards either patrolling the hallways of the building or standing at attention at various doors and cross tunnels. The Judge really had stepped up security. The guard population had been noticeably thinner before now.
Fortunately, Drake knew the way to Lady Skybreak’s chambers since he’d traveled them before. They had to go all the way to the center of the building. There, even more capital guards were stationed. They traveled around a curved hallway and then back up a parallel hall. It wasn’t a short path, but it was at least straightforward.
Once they got within sight of the door to Lord Skybreak’s chambers, Drake spotted several men and women in leather armor in addition to the capital guards. So Sky wasn’t trusting purely to the capital’s security force to keep her safe. Having some of his own people outside as well was a good idea. He’d give that order as soon as he got back.
The capital guards in the hall didn’t challenge him, but the leather armor-clad man and woman outside the door did. Both carried long blades, which made sense given the close quarters. A blade would be better than a bow and arrow in here.
“Halt!” the woman ordered. “State your business!”
“Lord Gloomwood here to see Lord Skybreak,” Drake said. “We talked about this.”
“Wait here,” the man ordered. He knocked on the door, a pattern of three knocks.
The door opened just a bit. The man spoke quietly with someone on the other side but did not enter. The door shut again. The man resumed his post.
Lord Skybreak’s people really were paranoid after the cabal. Drake would make sure his people were equally paranoid when he returned. He glanced at Emily to see if she looked paranoid, but she was simply humming quietly to herself.
His blissfully zen murdermaid always looked like she was having the time of her life. Maybe he’d feel the same if he could chop the soul of anyone who darkened his day. Either way, Emily’s calm helped him remain calm. She was a good friend.
The door opened once more, and then another ranger stepped out. “You may enter.”
“Thanks,” Drake said. “Also, my battle maid’s entering as well.” He didn’t want Emily throwing a fit if he tried to leave her outside... or chopping someone.
“That’s acceptable,” the man said.
Drake slipped in through the door with Emily practically on his heels. They entered to find that Sky’s chambers were now organized differently than he had been at lunch. The common room now had a large table in the middle of it with a big map laid out on that table. Drake looked it over and realized it appeared to be a map of the whole realm.
The map matched what he’d seen before in Samuel’s books. This realm was a mostly circular mass of land with a few noticeable bays and inlets. Korhaubauten rested on the center east of the mass, facing the sea, with the manor territories arranged around it. There was an island chain off the west coast that added to Lord Brightwater’s territory.
He also spotted colorful markers like those he’d made for his diorama map at home placed on the map. A number of blue markers were clustered along the border between Skybreak and Redbow territory, facing a number of red markers.
Perhaps they were gaming out some sort of military encounter. Perhaps Sky was worried about Lord Redbow’s forces invading her lands. Was she working out what would happen if he tried to invade her territory? He’d ask her when he saw her.
“This way, Lord Gloomwood,” the man who’d invited them inside said.
Drake didn’t recognize anyone in these chambers. He didn’t see Karth or Head Ranger Cask or Lady Skybreak. The reason why became obvious when he reached the balcony. All four of them were out there talking in quiet tones. Sky looked up when he arrived.
“Lord Skybreak,” Drake said. “Am I interrupting?”
“Yes,” she told him.
Oh. Well then.
“But I know you wouldn’t have done so if it wasn’t important,” she added. She glanced at Cask. “Can you and Karth excuse us a moment?”
“Of course, lord,” Cask said.
Karth glanced at Drake again. When he did so, Drake caught an odd look. Karth didn’t exactly look angry with him, but he certainly didn’t look happy. While he hid it, Drake had the distinct impression Karth was annoyed by his arrival. He’d ask about that later.
Once they’d exited, which he hadn’t asked for but was absolutely willing to allow, he approached Sky and her mother. “Sorry to bother you, but I need another favor.”
“Does this favor involve us being censured by the noble court?” Viktoria asked.
“Not this time.” Drake grinned. “But I do need to call my steward and spymaster.”
“I suppose their counsel might be useful,” Sky agreed. “I’ll go get my mirror.”
Author's Note: Next week, Drake sinks a boat and learns how much he can suck.
Have a great weekend, everyone!
Read Ahead on the Patreon
Chat on the Discord
“Lark... I’m going to ask you something now, and I’d like you to answer it as best you can. I promise, no matter how you answer, I won’t be upset. I just need a friendly ear.”
Her smile once again made his heart flutter, which was both hot and annoying. “I have had a number of strange requests in my time, lord. Ask anything you wish.”
“In your opinion. Based on what you’ve seen in your time. If I can kill people and not feel guilty about it, and I can see people die and not feel sad about it, is that normal?”
“Were these people whom you killed trying to hurt you or those you care about?”
She hadn’t so much as batted an eye at his question. “Yes, I suppose. The people I’ve killed were trying to kill me or others I wanted to protect.”
“And these people you saw die, how well did you know them?”
“Not that well. Not at all, mostly. Except a few.”
“And would you say the deaths of those you knew personally hurt more, or less, than those you do not know?”
Drake considered how he felt about Thak, the zarovian Suck had killed. A zarovian who loved hitting things, and a loyal soldier who’d served him and died protecting him. “It hurts more. But still... I’m doing all right. More than all right. Should I be?”
She shrugged. “Could I suggest, Lord Gloomwood, that you are simply overwhelmed?”
He was immediately intrigued. “What does that mean?”
“A person in your position lives every moment under the threat of assassination and with the weight of protecting a manor full of people always in his thoughts. The situations you encounter every day are disturbingly intense. You see far more death than most.”
“And that makes it okay to not feel sad about it?”
“It means that you simply may have so many intense experiences washing over you at once that you may not be capable of feeling... well, much of anything in any moment. Or perhaps too much. I have only known you for a day, so please forgive me if I speculate.”
“You’re forgiven,” Drake said quickly. “And please speculate.”
“After seeing how you treat your thralls, I suspect you are simply too focused on protecting them and yourself in this current storm to worry about anyone outside your manor. I have spoken with many who face intense situations every day. Sailors. Soldiers. Mercenaries. Some have expressed similar concerns to yours, and they do not face all you face.”
Drake considered her words in silence for a moment. He appreciated that she didn’t add any others. He swirled his drink and looked into what remained. “So you’re saying it’s normal that I don’t necessarily feel sad when I see innocent people get murdered in front of me, or guilty after I kill people trying to hurt me or my people.”
“I am suggesting that you cannot process such emotions due to the weight of your position and the frequency of these events. I would suggest you not worry about the intensity of your emotions until you enjoy a period of relative calm, one where you can reflect and think without the constant worry of protecting yourself, your manor, and your thralls.”
Drake managed a chuckle, downed the rest of his drink, and put the empty mug down on the table. “I don’t think that’s happening any time soon.”
“Then I would not trouble yourself. I would suggest how you feel today is as normal as anyone can feel when forced to deal, every day, with the situations you encounter.”
Drake sighed and smiled. “That actually does make me feel better.”
“Then... I am very glad I could be of service.” She raised her mug to her lips once more, her eyes never leaving his.
A heavy knock sounded on the door to his chambers. With a curse Emily stumbled out of the kitchen, then glanced his way in obvious alarm. “There’s a knock!”
Drake stared at her. “I heard.” So she had been listening the whole time.
“Shall I get the door, lord?” Emily asked innocently.
He scowled at her. “Yes. Why don’t you go do that.”
As Emily walked to the door, Drake sighed and glanced at Lark. “Sorry about her. Anyway... it’s almost sunset. You’re been great, and, um...”
“You may call upon my services at any time,” Lark said softly. “For any reason.”
He couldn’t help but grin as he basked in her warm smile. “I just might.”
Emily returned wearing an annoyed expression. “It was simply a courier from the royal court, lord. She had a message.”
Drake nodded. He waited a beat. When Emily said nothing else, he added “What was the message?”
“It was a message for you, lord.”
Lark rose immediately. “I shall take my leave.”
Oh. Right. It wouldn’t be great for Emily to repeat a secret manor lord message in front of Drake’s currently employed courtesan, even if she was sworn to secrecy and all that. He was buzzed. Still, it was awful late for a young woman to travel home alone.
“Can I send an escort with you?” Drake asked.
Lark smiled at him. “I will be fine, lord. Thank you for asking, but I know this city well.”
“Okay, cool. So... thanks again.”
She offered a half bow, rose, nodded to Emily, and headed for the door. After she closed it behind her, Emily glanced at him and shook her head in visible disappointment.
“That, lord, is what I would call a missed opportunity.”
“Thanks for sharing,” Drake said. “What was the message?”
“The cabal is now officially canceled, however, the royal court requests that all manor lords remain in the capital until the inquisitors charged with investigating today’s incident are satisfied they have both apprehended the culprit and confident it cannot happen again.”
“In other words, don’t leave town until we know who summoned all those fish people.” Drake sighed. “I wish they could just go arrest Lord Redbow.”
Emily perked up. “You have proof it was Lord Redbow?”
“All I have is a cocky and annoying wink, which is the problem. That sneaky fuck probably had whatever magic or artifact he used to summon those fishmen and murder Lord Blackmane ready to go long before the cabal started, but I don’t know how we could prove that. All I’m certain of right now is he did it to stop the inquisition, which means he’s almost certainly the one with the thrall who can change what people see.”
Emily nodded as if all of that made perfect sense. “What if we simply killed him?”
Drake was buzzed, but not that buzzed. This sounded a bit less crazy than Emily’s normal suggestions. “Wouldn’t we get arrested for doing that?”
“If we attacked him in the capital while the royal court said not to attack him, then yes, of course they would be upset,” Emily said calmly. “But once this business is concluded, we could ambush him on the road out of the capital. I bet you could even use the blood you got from that assassin to suck his blood out through silverweave!”
Was she right? When Suck had used his blood-sucking rarity, it had been powerful enough to drop a person even through silverweave. Since Drake burnished rarities, that suggested that if he were to absorb Suck’s power, he would be even more powerful. If he could get close enough to Lord Redbow, he could straight up murder the man.
But what then? Would the noble court censure him? He’d have to ask Samuel, but he suspected a direct attack would be frowned upon. Lord Proudglade could use his shock spear rarity to blow Drake to smithereens if he wanted, but he hadn’t. He’d sent assassins instead.
Also, if Redbow died at Drake’s hands, whoever he had chosen as his successor... if he had one... could be an even more dangerous assassin with even more reason to kill him. That meant killing Lord Redbow might not even solve anything. The next lord could be worse.
Finally, thanks to the stupid way debts passed on here, he’d saddle his successor... who might be Samuel... with the “Lord Gloomwood killed Lord Redbow!” debt. As much as he liked annoying Samuel in casual conversation, he didn’t want to fuck the man over in that way.
Drake needed to confirm the details with Samuel, but it seemed like manor lords didn’t directly fight other manor lords except in specific cases, like an honor duel. What if he challenged Lord Redbow to one? Could that resolve it? Another question for his spymaster.
A man who he wouldn’t see until he told him it was okay to return.
Drake rose. “Emily? We’re going out.”
“Of course, lord!” She smiled. “We can still catch Lark if we move quickly.”
Drake rolled his eyes. “We’re not going to get me laid. We’re going to speak with Lord Skybreak, and then we’re going to use the mirror I gave her to contact Lydia and Samuel.”
Emily nodded thoughtfully. “I suppose that’s also important.”
He’d already given Nicole and Valentia the rest of the night off. With the capital guards on high alert due to the fish people incident, he doubted he’d need an escort at all. Still, Emily would be upset if he left without her, and Lydia would be really upset if she found out. So Drake grabbed his cloak, adjusted his silverweave, and headed out the door.
With Emily walking close at his side like a very nervous mother hen... with a giant axe... they passed a number of capital guards either patrolling the hallways of the building or standing at attention at various doors and cross tunnels. The Judge really had stepped up security. The guard population had been noticeably thinner before now.
Fortunately, Drake knew the way to Lady Skybreak’s chambers since he’d traveled them before. They had to go all the way to the center of the building. There, even more capital guards were stationed. They traveled around a curved hallway and then back up a parallel hall. It wasn’t a short path, but it was at least straightforward.
Once they got within sight of the door to Lord Skybreak’s chambers, Drake spotted several men and women in leather armor in addition to the capital guards. So Sky wasn’t trusting purely to the capital’s security force to keep her safe. Having some of his own people outside as well was a good idea. He’d give that order as soon as he got back.
The capital guards in the hall didn’t challenge him, but the leather armor-clad man and woman outside the door did. Both carried long blades, which made sense given the close quarters. A blade would be better than a bow and arrow in here.
“Halt!” the woman ordered. “State your business!”
“Lord Gloomwood here to see Lord Skybreak,” Drake said. “We talked about this.”
“Wait here,” the man ordered. He knocked on the door, a pattern of three knocks.
The door opened just a bit. The man spoke quietly with someone on the other side but did not enter. The door shut again. The man resumed his post.
Lord Skybreak’s people really were paranoid after the cabal. Drake would make sure his people were equally paranoid when he returned. He glanced at Emily to see if she looked paranoid, but she was simply humming quietly to herself.
His blissfully zen murdermaid always looked like she was having the time of her life. Maybe he’d feel the same if he could chop the soul of anyone who darkened his day. Either way, Emily’s calm helped him remain calm. She was a good friend.
The door opened once more, and then another ranger stepped out. “You may enter.”
“Thanks,” Drake said. “Also, my battle maid’s entering as well.” He didn’t want Emily throwing a fit if he tried to leave her outside... or chopping someone.
“That’s acceptable,” the man said.
Drake slipped in through the door with Emily practically on his heels. They entered to find that Sky’s chambers were now organized differently than he had been at lunch. The common room now had a large table in the middle of it with a big map laid out on that table. Drake looked it over and realized it appeared to be a map of the whole realm.
The map matched what he’d seen before in Samuel’s books. This realm was a mostly circular mass of land with a few noticeable bays and inlets. Korhaubauten rested on the center east of the mass, facing the sea, with the manor territories arranged around it. There was an island chain off the west coast that added to Lord Brightwater’s territory.
He also spotted colorful markers like those he’d made for his diorama map at home placed on the map. A number of blue markers were clustered along the border between Skybreak and Redbow territory, facing a number of red markers.
Perhaps they were gaming out some sort of military encounter. Perhaps Sky was worried about Lord Redbow’s forces invading her lands. Was she working out what would happen if he tried to invade her territory? He’d ask her when he saw her.
“This way, Lord Gloomwood,” the man who’d invited them inside said.
Drake didn’t recognize anyone in these chambers. He didn’t see Karth or Head Ranger Cask or Lady Skybreak. The reason why became obvious when he reached the balcony. All four of them were out there talking in quiet tones. Sky looked up when he arrived.
“Lord Skybreak,” Drake said. “Am I interrupting?”
“Yes,” she told him.
Oh. Well then.
“But I know you wouldn’t have done so if it wasn’t important,” she added. She glanced at Cask. “Can you and Karth excuse us a moment?”
“Of course, lord,” Cask said.
Karth glanced at Drake again. When he did so, Drake caught an odd look. Karth didn’t exactly look angry with him, but he certainly didn’t look happy. While he hid it, Drake had the distinct impression Karth was annoyed by his arrival. He’d ask about that later.
Once they’d exited, which he hadn’t asked for but was absolutely willing to allow, he approached Sky and her mother. “Sorry to bother you, but I need another favor.”
“Does this favor involve us being censured by the noble court?” Viktoria asked.
“Not this time.” Drake grinned. “But I do need to call my steward and spymaster.”
“I suppose their counsel might be useful,” Sky agreed. “I’ll go get my mirror.”
Author's Note: Next week, Drake sinks a boat and learns how much he can suck.
Have a great weekend, everyone!
Read Ahead on the Patreon
Chat on the Discord
