Memoirs - 93

by Flameruner

Chapter 83 - Visits^2

The day after the Cabal’s attack, Scarlett was once more walking down the mansion’s hallways to receive another sudden guest.

There were a lot of them lately.

And while this wasn’t exactly the best time for receiving visitors, she couldn’t just ignore this person, either.

Things around the mansion were a complete mess right now. Scarlett was thankful she turned out to be the Cabal Adept’s primary target, and that most of the staff had made it through relatively unharmed. Two guards had gotten some nasty head injuries, but Rosa had managed to fix them up to a level where they would recover after a week’s rest.

In comparison, Garside’s injury from fighting Riya was pretty severe. Rosa had done what she could during the night, and now during the morning, but apparently the healing took even more than usual out of the old man, and the injury had reached all the way down to the bones. He would still make it, but for now, his left arm was out of commission and he would have to spend some time recovering. Scarlett was going to look into if there were any other forms of treatment available as well later on.

The mansion itself also hadn’t fared well from the assault. The chief victim had been the courtyard, where the fountain and surrounding stonework had been wrecked, and all the flowerbeds either burnt or trampled down. In addition, the building faces facing the courtyard sustained a good amount of damage, as well as some hallways in the east wing where Garside and Fynn had fought the Cabal Adepts.

Frankly, just the thought of the costs of repairing all this in a mansion like this sent shivers down her spine. This place was bound to be more valuable than anything else the Hartford family had in its possession. Evelyne was sure to have a fit when she learns of it as well.

Scarlett would have to double down on her efforts to make up for the costs.

It wasn’t as if she could send a receipt to the Hallowed Cabal for the damages.

Though she should probably count herself lucky that she was still walking around like this. In order to get the Hallowed Cabal to agree to a deal with her, she’d made a pretty large gamble. Namely, that The Angler Man was currently in his slumber.

The Angler Man was old. Far too old to still be breathing. As a consequence of how he was maintaining his life, he sometimes had to go into slumbers for extended periods. In the game, this would sometimes happen at the start or end of certain questlines and usually lasted a month or so. Scarlett had heard he sometimes slumbered for much longer periods, though that was probably before the game started.

One thing she hadn’t known was that he would be in one of his slumbers this early in the timeline. That was why it had been a gamble. But it would fit with what she’d seen, and was the alternative that was most advantageous to her current situation. The Hallowed Cabal usually wouldn’t hesitate in acting against people like her, because they could always get any information they wanted with The Angler Man’s help. But if he was in a slumber, they couldn’t rely on that option. So if a situation were to appear where they needed certain information from her, they would either have to kidnap her and bank on being able to force the information out of her, or compromise and make a deal to guarantee that they got what they wanted.

In this case, the Seal of Thainnith was tied to what the Hallowed Cabal was up to with their attacks across the empire. The seal itself was split into three pieces. The Cabal should already have one of those pieces, but the remaining two wouldn’t be found until later. In the game, the second was found by the player and then handed over to different groups depending on who they sided with. The third one, however, was a bit different. While it could be found by the player, the truth was that it was technically already in the hands of a certain individual whose goals went directly opposite of The Angler Man’s. The Cabal wasn’t aware of this, however, and would only know that this person was also looking for the other pieces. For them, it was a race against time to find the pieces as soon as they could, which was why there’d been an opening for Scarlett to force them to accept their offer.

Of course, in order to even get them to talk with her to begin with, she’d had to tell them the location of the second piece. But that much was acceptable, as long as it bought her more time. She had also assured them she would bring them the third piece, in return for them making a deal with her, and promising to leave her alone. After that, they’d left with what essentially boiled down to threatening her not to try anything, and a promise that they’d meet again soon.

At least they’d had the decency to bring their dead companions along with them. Though she wouldn’t have minded a chance to keep the equipment.

Honestly, the whole affair had been a mess. Scarlett had at several points been an inch from losing it, both because of how angry she had been at the whole situation, and because of how nerve-wracking it was, taking part in negotiations where she knew a misstep could lead to the death of herself and of all those around her. She imagined she’d cut quite the figure, standing in a ruined courtyard in the middle of the night, in nothing but her nightgown.

And the only thing she’d managed to buy was maybe a few weeks of peace. Either until The Angler Man returned, or the Cabal retrieved the second piece of the seal—which was all the way over in the Unresting Steppes—and expected her to deliver the third.

And she wasn’t expecting for a second for them to actually keep their promise to her after they had the pieces. They literally had no reason to.

Well, jokes on them. They’d attacked her in her own home. Did they really think she had been planning to just let things go that easily?

She had wanted none of this. But now that they had forced her into this situation, they would have to deal with the consequences. Things wouldn’t go quite as they wished.

When Scarlett reached the parlor room where the guest had been led, a woman waited for her on one of the couches. She wore a long white dress that curled up around the neck, with a thick tome hanging off a gold ring that was fastened to her waist, and had straight dark hair that reached down her back, along with tanned skin which you rarely saw on the people here in the western parts of the empire. And while she looked to be somewhere in her late thirties—with only vague signs of wrinkles growing around her eyes—Scarlett knew the woman was about a decade older than that.

"You must be Baroness Scarlett Hartford." The woman looked up at Scarlett with a pair of clear hazel eyes.

Scarlett walked over and sat down opposite her. "I am. And I presume you are Emeritus Master Docent Grand Wizard Adalicia Mendenhall?"

A small smile played on the woman’s face. "Yes, but Adalicia is enough. Obstinate old mages are the only ones who focus on the titles these days."

"…I see."

Well, that was a wasted fifteen minutes spent memorizing that whole thing then.

Scarlett glanced at the empty table in front of Adalicia. "I apologize. It appears my servants have lapsed in their accommodations. Would you like for tea or any other refreshments?"

"No, that’s quite alright. And I’m the one who should apologize." Adalicia gently shook her head. "I realize my visit was rather sudden, and it looks like something serious must have happened recently. I almost thought I was passing through a battlefield when I was outside."

"Unfortunately, there was an incident last night where some belligerent individuals saw fit to assault my home. It appears to have been in retaliation for an event where I aided Count Knottley in dealing with a local criminal network. Thankfully, we succeeded in repelling them, and the injuries sustained were treatable to a large degree. It will take some time to repair the damage to the estate, however."

"I’m glad to hear no one died." Adalicia held a sympathetic expression. "If I could, I would have visited at another time, but unfortunately I am still in the middle of some important work on the Rising isle. In fact, I borrowed the help of an acquaintance of mine to travel here temporarily, but both of us will have to return as soon as possible."

Scarlett arched a brow. "An acquaintance of yours? Capable of bringing you to Freybrook from the Rising Isle that easily?"

Adalicia let out a chuckle. "I wouldn’t necessarily call it easy, but yes. He is a member of the Ustrum Assembly, and an arch wizard. He was rather curious about what business I had that warranted my visit here. I don’t think he appreciated my silence on the matter too much."

"If they are one of the Ustrum Assembly’s arch wizards, could they be Arch Wizard Ainsworth?" Scarlett asked.

The Ustrum Assembly would only have two arch wizards at this point in time. And considering that teleportation fell under the aeromancy school of magic, there was only one alternative for who it could be. In the game, Ainsworth had been one of the less assholey characters among the Assembly, and you could get several quests from him if you were doing the Ustrum Assembly questline.

Adalicia nodded. "Yes. Are you well acquainted with mage society?"

"I am familiar with some of the more influential names. However, I would not call myself an authority on the subject."

"You knew who I was, at the very least. I wouldn’t have expected most nobles to care about someone like me." Adalicia smiled. "Why did you seek for me in particular? I know many people who would have been interested in an offer like yours, several of which would probably have been more suited for it."

"There are many reasons," Scarlett said. "For one, what I have heard, both of your character and capabilities, align well with what I have been searching for. And while I do not doubt there are many who could be of similar usefulness, there are few who have as respectable a reputation."

The woman was probably the closest you came to a ‘pure-good’ aligned person you found among the more powerful mages in the game. And considering she was planning for this cooperation to last for some time, Adalicia was the best fit.

"I also did not wish to excessively involve myself with the Assembly’s matters, for personal reasons," Scarlett continued. "And as I am sure you are aware, the mages of the Rising Isle can be difficult to interact with for a noble of the empire such as I."

While the empire and the Rising Isle weren’t hostile towards each other—and hadn’t been for over a century—there was still a certain amount of competitiveness between the two powers. They were both influential players on an international level, in addition to being in close proximity to each other. She knew Evelyne had been trying to get in contact with members of the Rising Isle regarding the Zuverian ruins, but wasn’t sure how that had panned out.

"Of the mage towers, the Elystead Tower was the best alternative. Even though I cannot say that my last interaction with them ended well."

Adalicia gave her a confused look. "Your last interaction?"

"Yes." Scarlett frowned as she recalled the event. "I met with Vice-dean Rowley several weeks ago, intending to propose a similar agreement with him. But it culminated in him barring me from the premises before we could have any true discussion of the matter."

The woman blinked at her a few times. "…What?"

"He banned me from the premises. And from personally interacting any further with the Elystead Tower."

Adalicia stared at her. "Can I ask why?"

Scarlett crossed her arms. "I wish I could say. Unfortunately, he did not bother to provide an explanation. In return for part of the information I held, I had asked for his assistance in a certain matter. Instead of simply declining, he seemed to see it fit that I could no longer even speak of the topic anywhere near his vicinity."

"What exactly was this matter about?"

"I cannot say." She eyed the woman for a moment. "Nor does it hold any significance now. I have already resolved it through other means."

There was no point in risking getting a similar reaction from Adalicia now.

The wizard had knitted her forehead. "He didn’t offer any explanation at all for his actions? Rowley can be rash, but he rarely does things without reason."

"He did not, no. He only promised he would pretend our conversation never happened, and that was all. But as I said, it no longer matters. I require his aid no more. Although I could still make use of yours."

Adalicia gave her a long look, as if she was considering her words.

Scarlett was unsure what the woman would think. Depending on what she knew about her, she could feel anything from distrust to sympathy. Adalicia was a kind person, and the original Scarlett hadn’t been.

But the original had also been pretty decent at maintaining a good reputation with certain groups, so it was entirely possible there wasn’t anything bad for Adalicia to have heard. Scarlett herself had no idea how far-reaching the worst rumors about her were.

"I’ll investigate more closely what might have been the reason when I return to the tower," Adalicia eventually said. "For now, should we move on to the heart of the matter?"

Scarlett gave a short nod. "Very well then. I will be blunt. What I require is a dependable ally for the near future, who is knowledgeable on matters of magic and has some say in the Ustrum Assembly. One who can protect me from the rapacity of the Assembly’s member and those of the various mage towers, and can aid me in my continued research. In return, as I believe my sister described in her letters, I will share part of the knowledge I have gathered on the Zuverian ruins and other notable sites. Eventually, this might also include the locations of primordial spells."

Adalicia showed slight surprise at the mention of primordial spells, but mostly maintained a cool expression. Scarlett got the sense the woman was doubting her words somewhat. "Spells. Not spell. You’re saying you know of more than one?"

"That is correct."

The woman studied her for several seconds. "Baroness. I hope I’m not breaching some convention I’m not aware of, but that sounds preposterous."

"I imagine it would. Yet is it the truth. If you find it difficult to believe my word, I could provide further evidence if you were to allow me the time. I can assure you that I do not take any of this lightly."

"…Did you tell the Vice-dean the same thing?"

"I informed him I knew the location of one primordial spell, but that was all. I saw no point in sharing more than that before negotiations had begun."

"And he believed you?"

"He appeared to entertain the notion. Enough to begin talks. Of course, that was before he kicked me out." Scarlett couldn’t stop a hint of annoyance from seeping in towards the end.

"I’m not sure what could have possibly made him act like that, if he truly believed you."

"It is largely a mystery to me as well," Scarlett said. "To clarify, however: while my research has informed me of the locations of several primordial spells, none of them are easy to obtain. Each would require much preparation, and one might have to risk their lives. Nonetheless, I imagine that mages such as you would not let that hinder you. IN particular, I can share that at least one spell whose location I know appears to belong to the lumomancy school. There are also several promising artifacts mentioned in some of the records I have found, which I imagine would interest you as well."

An almost motherly smile appeared on Adalicia’s face. "That certainly is interesting, I’ll say. Even if your words do sound somewhat ridiculous, it’s clear you know how to intrigue me."

"I endeavor to always be prepared before going into negotiations such as this," Scarlett said. "It would not do for me not to be familiar with those I intend to collaborate with."

"That’s a wise outlook to have in life." Adalicia met her eyes for a moment. "But before I say anything about the offer itself, would you mind if I asked a few questions of you first?"

"Feel free."

"You’ve referenced your research a few times. I’d like to know exactly what sort of research that is. Is it work you’ve carried out yourself? And is that what then led to your discovery of the Zuverian ruins outside of Freybrook?"

"It is, in part, my own work, yes. But it is built upon notes passed down by some of my ancestors, who appeared to have had a great interest in the subject. Originally, it was largely a gathering of old legends and tales, with some references to previous ruins that had been discovered. This aided in finding the ruins near here, which were concealed beneath an old stone formation, and had a hidden puzzle that opened the entrance."

Adalicia nodded. "That is common for Zuverian ruins."

"I have also cross-referenced much of what I found in those ruins with other sources I have access to in order to determine the location of more hidden ruins. As of now, I have a sufficient enough grasp on this network of ruins to determine the exact location of several, and the general area of many others."

"Would I be able to take a look at this material?"

Scarlett shook her head. "I am afraid not. None other than I may see it. That is a point I will not negotiate on."

"But it will be hard to determine how reliable it is otherwise. Finding one set of ruins is far from a revolutionary achievement."

"That may be so, but I am well aware of the worth of this research." Scarlett considered Adalicia for a moment. "And I have already visited more of these sites."

"You have?"

"Yes. While I have not announced it publically, I visited a forgotten Zuverian outpost last week. It will not be long before I visit more of them."

"An outpost? Similar to the one near the Resting Eye?"

"Indeed."

The Resting Eye was a massive volcano to the east, which was situated in the middle of a large lake. Like the Whitdown Mountains, it also had a Zuverian outpost near it.

"…That means there was a Kilnstone as well."

"Correct. However, I will not share the location of this particular Kilnstone."

Adalicia’s eyes widened slightly. "Why not? It would be a tremendous discovery."

"Because this one does not belong to the empire. And if people were to begin visiting this place, it could spell disaster for many."

Well, it probably wouldn’t. It’d be inconvenient for Scarlett, though. And there was legitimately a slight risk of catastrophe if people started walking around that area of the Whitdown Mountains and ended up stumbling into the wrong place.

"So profit isn’t your only goal with this, then?" Adalicia asked.

Scarlett paused. Was that how she interpreted it?

"It is, to a certain degree. But there are other factors that take priority over such things."

Adalicia went quiet, and Scarlett allowed her time to think.

Her gaze wandered across the room as she took in the different paintings and the embroidered tapestry that hung above some of the windows. She should probably consider herself lucky that this room and the others like it didn’t receive any damage during the night. Some of the things in here had to be worth a fortune.

…Actually, how much were these things worth? Could you sell it? Or maybe that would be a bit too tasteless, considering how old some of it could it.

"It’s an interesting opportunity," Adalicia said. If your words are true."

Scarlett turned back to the woman.

"I wouldn’t be here if I thought it was all nonsense. But despite what I might believe personally, I am still a mage of Elystead Tower. It’s inevitable that they’ll get involved in some manner if I were to work with you. If that creates difficulties because of Vice-dean Rowley, there isn’t much I can do. I am not above him in authority when it comes to tower matters."

"I presume the Dean of the tower is away at the moment?"

Adalicia let out a sigh. "He is. There is no telling when he will return."

"Then I will simply have to proceed with the requisite caution. I do not believe Rowley will cause issue as long as Elystead Tower stands to gain from their affiliation with my house. There is no intention of meeting with him personally on my end anyhow."

"Does that mean you intend to give Elystead Tower priority when it cames to artifacts and discoveries made from the results of our collaborations?"

"I would give you priority, since this is a partnership between the two of us." Scarlett looked the woman in the eyes. "How the distribution of what remains is decided I will leave to my younger sister. If your cooperation is contingent on allowing the Elystead Tower precedence, I am sure we can arrange something along those lines as well."

Adalicia smiled. "It would be foolish for me not to take an opportunity like that."

"Then am I to understand that you are keen on accepting my proposal?"

"I think it will still depend on how things proceed from here, but yes."

The ends of Scarlett’s lips rose in a smile, and she leaned forward in her seat. "If so, let me elaborate on what exactly this proposal would signify."

An hour later, Adalicia had left, and Scarlett was walking back toward her office. The two of them had ended up discussing a surprising amount of things related to Scarlett’s "research", and what further information she held regarding the ancient Zuver. Scarlett had been careful not to divulge too much, but there had still been a lot to talk about. Adalicia’s interest in the subject appeared to be a bit more intense than Scarlett had originally thought.

She found herself glad she’d read up on lately. While it was clear she wasn’t as knowledgeable on the topic as the wizard had been, with a mix of what Scarlett knew from the game and what she’d learned during the past few weeks, she felt certain that she had presented a reliable enough image.

Adalicia’s enthusiasm had probably spiked when the conversation had passed on to some of the different artifacts and enchantments that Scarlett knew the Zuver had. Adalicia was a wizard who specialized in both lumomancy and unschooled magic, the latter of which was the most common when it came to magical items and enchantments.

Eventually, though, the woman had announced she couldn’t delay any longer. Considering an arch wizard was waiting for her, Scarlett couldn’t really protest, even if there were a few more specifics she wanted to go through. The fact that an individual that powerful had helped Adalicia with something this minor spoke of the woman’s connections, despite not being an arch wizard herself.

Before leaving, however, Adalicia had presented an unexpected question, wondering if Scarlett was related to any of the mages on the Rising isle. Apparently, there was a grand wizard of that name who held some repute there.

Scarlett had no idea who this person was. The Rising Isle had over a dozen mages who had reached the ‘grand’ level, and even when playing the game there hadn’t been any point in learning all their names. She couldn’t remember anything about there being a branch family like that, though, from what she’d seen of the Hartford family tree in the mansion’s library. So she couldn’t even answer if they were related or not, which is roughly what she ended up telling Adalicia.

She’d have to ask Evelyne about it later on. If their family had such powerful connections within the Rising Isle, it felt as if the younger Hartford sister wouldn't have been so engrossed in forging connections with the towers and other mage factions earlier. Maybe it was just a coincidence. Or perhaps it was just a very distant branch.

Though it felt odd that they would have kept the name if that was the case. Scarlett had learned that most branches of noble houses here often ended up creating cadet branches with new names. And from what she’d seen of the family tree, the Hartford family had no such cadet branches in the current generation. Scarlett and Evelyne were the only still-living members of the family, unless you went back over two generators.

It was an odd piece of information, hearing about this other Hartford, but nothing that directly mattered to her at the moment. Now that she had Adalicia’s preliminary support as a patron on Zuverian matters, she wouldn’t have to worry as much about those particular things. Adding Adalicia to the mix would bring an air of legitimacy to her findings, and put less attention directly on her and her methods. Not to mention how it would make reaching certain ruins a lot easier.

Now she just had a mountain of other problems looming on the horizon instead.

Scarlett paused in her thoughts as she reached the hallway outside her office. Molly stood next to one of the windows facing the courtyard, bent over as she seemed to interact with something on the ledge.

Earlier this morning, Molly had looked like she was about to keel over with how pale she’d been, the events of the night still fresh in the servant’s mind. Which was understandable enough. Scarlett had learned that the woman was a mother—of all things—and when she wasn’t working here in the mansion, she would return to her home in the city and take care of her two young children. The woman couldn’t have much time left for all of that though, considering how often she was here at the mansion, and now she might very well have lost her life the night before if Fynn hadn’t been there.

What was Scarlett paying the woman?

Molly looked up as she approached. "Oh, my Lady."

She curtsied.

Scarlett’s gaze went past her, freezing as she laid eyes on a small shape on the window ledge.

It was a cat. With pure, jet-black fur and clear amethyst eyes.

Molly turned to the animal. "I-I found her walking the hallways here, my Lady. I’m not sure where she came from or who she belongs to, but I thought it might have been that guest from the mage tower…"

The woman looked up at Scarlett with a hesitant expression. "Should I get Gilbert so that he can remove her?"

The cat’s wide eyes were affixed on Scarlett, as if it was appraising her.

"…No. That will not be necessary. Leave it be and return to your post. I will call you if you are needed."

"As you wish, my Lady." Molly threw one last glance at the cat, then padded down the hallway to where her quarters were located.

Scarlett’s eyes stayed on the cat. To think that the time had already arrived.

The cat meowed and jumped down on the floor, striding up to the office door. Scarlett slowly followed, stopping in front of the entrance for a moment. The cat meowed again, as if it was impatient at her slight delay.

She glanced down at it, then reached out to open the door. The cat quickly slinked inside, and she followed.

At the far end of the office, behind her large desk, stood a man with his back turned toward her. On the wall in front of him hung a massive painting depicting a vast, unfamiliar battlefield. A long dark cape was draped over the man’s shoulder, and a top hat sat on his head. His right arm was stretched out beside him, resting atop a tall black cane.

The cat crossed the room and disappeared behind the desk, soon appearing on the other end as it jumped up and laid down next to some documents Scarlett had gone through earlier in the day.

"Greetings, Baroness." A dignified voice rang out across the room as the man tapped a finger against the crown of his cane. "I heard you wanted to meet with me."

The Gentleman had come to visit.

Chapter 93 - Cryptic crypts

"That’s one large statue~" Rosa hummed as their group crested the last ridge, treading along the craggy path that trailed the hillside.

Before them stood a tall rock statue, at least thirty meters in height, holding up a giant shield before it. The head had broken off, and there were several large nicks and gashes in the bare stone that made its age apparent, but it was an impressive sight nonetheless. Scarlett doubted this place saw much traffic, considering how out of the way it was, but it was at least notable enough to be marked as a minor landmark on a map.

She scanned across the surrounding landscape. It was nothing but rolling hills as far as the eye could see—not that it was particularly far, with these slopes—covered with clusters of rock and yellowing grass. Even with the statue being as tall as it was, trying to locate it would have taken a while if you had to search through the entire region. She was lucky they found as good a map as they did. Following its directions, they’d been able to cover at least three-quarters of the way on the carriage, and had only spent about two hours on foot. And with the stamina boost given by the [Mark of the Staunch], a trek like that wasn’t an issue for Scarlett anymore.

As they made their way to the foot of the statue, which sported several haphazardly spread stones that had probably been part of the statue itself once, the others in the group stopped as they started looking around.

"What now?" Allyssa asked.

Scarlett looked at the girl. Right. None of them had actually been with the last time she found a Zuverian ruin, if you discounted the Zuverian outpost near Fynn’s old home. They wouldn’t know what to expect.

She threw one last look around. Not that she was expecting to spot anything. She would be far from the first to notice if anyone had been following them. But she’d already had Fynn check if there were any others nearby, and she was confident enough in his abilities. Whatever tail the Cabal were bound to have placed on her didn’t appear to be around at the moment. It might have helped that she’d traveled through the Kilnstone from Freybrook so suddenly, and then immediately made her way out of Darkshore to find this place. It wasn’t as if they were a spy organization.

And well, even if someone was nearby, they probably wouldn’t stay an issue for long.

She walked closer to the statue, standing directly in front of and beneath the large stone shield it was holding. The shield had several circular designs etched into its face, arranged in a rupee-like shape, with lines interconnecting them. It didn’t look like much more than embellishment on the stone.

Let’s see if she could remember this right or not.

She raised her hand and conjured five small Aqua Mines in front of the circles, detonating them in a set order. Then she waited a few seconds.

Nothing happened.

So that wasn’t right. She pulled up her notebook from her [Pouch of Holding] and struck out the first of the sketches she’d made. Then she moved on to the next one.

She repeated the process, conjuring more Aqua Mines and detonating them in another order.

Once more, nothing happened.

"You having fun?" Rosa’s voice rang out from behind her.

Scarlett looked back at the woman for a moment, then turned back to the statue. "I do not know how long this will take. Do not disturb me."

She glanced down at her notebook and the third sketch she’d made. Worst-case scenario, it would take a few thousand tries to figure out the right order for this. She couldn’t remember much of high school maths, but with eight different ‘buttons’ and a five-step sequence, there were a lot of potential combinations.

She’d thought she remembered the right one, or at least something close to it, but she wasn’t completely certain.

Continuing onto the next sketch, she struck them out one after one as she moved down the list of alternatives that had aligned closest with her memories. Eventually, after trying out about a dozen of them, she put her notebook back into the pouch with a frown.

There was one other alternative now, but it was far less satisfying.

She pulled out the book she had bought from the shopkeeper here in Darkshore earlier. Tales and Accords of Darkshore — The Old Ways. A gathering of old tales from the region. She had been quite surprised to see it at the store, considering it was a book in the game. One of many minor lore records that could be found here and there, which served both to further flesh out the world the game took place in and sometimes to reward those players devoted enough read through them.

She flipped through the pages until she found the one that was relevant to her.

The Warden of the Vale and his sentinels, read the text at the top. Beneath was a short story of a great warrior who was once said to watch over the region around Darkshore, along with five of his sentinels, and how they had beaten back a vast army of giants from the northeast at one time. Along with the story were a few simple illustrations, where each sentinel had a sign tied to them.

Scarlett had no idea if the story actually held much truth to it. It was an old folk tale, after all. But there was, without doubt, one part that wasn’t taken out of thin air.

She raised her hand once more, conjuring another set of five Aqua Mines, each in front of the symbols on the statue’s shield which resembled those in the book. Then she detonated them, in the order in which the sentinels had been introduced in the story.

A loud grinding sounded out. She took a quick step back as the shield suddenly slammed into the ground, sending pockets of dirt and grass into the air.

Allyssa coughed to Scarlett’s side, spitting out some dirt that seemed to have gotten into her mouth. Shin stood next to her, dusting away some more from her cape.

"What was that?"

"I’d call that flair." Rosa smiled as she stepped out from behind Fynn, whose white hair had gotten covered in a large patch of soil. "These symbols… Zuverian, right?"

"That is correct," Scarlett said with a frown as she patted away some of the dirt that had gotten on her. She hadn’t been expecting that.

"And I thought those old coots didn’t have it in them." The bard walked up and trailed her hands over the shield cutting into the ground. She turned back to Scarlett, pointing back with her thumb. "All that’s missing is him bursting into dance now."

"I doubt the Zuver would have added such a feature," Scarlett said. She paused as she saw Fynn raise his right hand with the [Mark of the Gale on it], the ring lighting up a light green as the wind around him rose. His hair rippled as the dirt blew away, and Scarlett blinked as happened to her.

That was convenient.

"Thank you, Fynn," she said, before walking up next to Rosa to study the shield.

It really wasn’t as satisfying to solve puzzles like these when you could just check what the right answer was. Still, she wasn’t about to waste several hours just because of her stubbornness. Finding this book could be considered a stroke of luck, and it meant they had so much more time to spend on other things.

She walked around to the other side of the shield. There, carved into its inside, was a rectangular gateway with a deep black surface that seemed to absorb all the surrounding light. It looked much like a Kilnstone as it was preparing to teleport people.

She pointed at the gate as the others joined her. "There is our entrance."

Allyssa eyed it. "A bit elaborate, isn’t it?"

"Not if it’s not supposed to be found," Shin said. "I imagine this place was hidden for a reason."

"Astute observation, Mister Thornthon." Scarlett watched as Fynn was the first to walk up to the gate.

The young man glanced back at her, and she gave him a nod. He placed his hand against the black surface, and then disappeared.

Waiting a few seconds, Scarlett then followed. As she touched the gate, her surroundings warped. A moment later, she found herself at the top of a stone staircase. Small sconces with dark green crystals hung from the walls, illuminating the space with a dim light.

Fynn stood a few steps down from her. As they waited, the rest of the party soon joined them.

"So this is a Zuverian ruin…?" Allyssa mumbled not long after she arrived, looking around.

Shin had stepped closer to examine one of the Zuver faces that were carved into the stone walls.

"While one could call this a ruin, it is in actuality a crypt," Scarlett said, walking down the stairs. Well, technically, the last ruin she’d visited had been a crypt as well. But this one had it in the name.

"What’s the difference?" Shin asked.

"I suppose it would be the location. We are currently underground."

She didn’t have to go far before she reached the bottom of the stairs, where it opened up into a wide chamber. She held up an arm to prevent the others from entering.

At the center of the chamber was a hulking construct of a dull grey steel, with faintly luminescent blue lines running along it like veins, leading down into the floor. Its limbs were an interconnected set of large, bulky blocks, with what were its fists resting on the ground and the protruding knob that passed as its head turned downwards.

Scarlett’s eyes passed over the chamber, following the blue lines that ran from the construct all the way to the walls, connecting to four different crystals at each end of the room. She raised her hand and quickly conjured four Aqua Mines next to each one. Cracks formed in the crystals after she detonated the mines, and the blue light running to the construct at the center of the room immediately faded.

It seemed that worked as well. She couldn’t for the life of her figure out why such an obvious flaw in design would exist outside of a game, but she was glad it did. Saved them a lot of trouble.

"Ehm, did you just turn thing off?" Allyssa asked.

"It would appear so, yes." Scarlett looked at Fynn. "Would you care to confirm?"

He stepped forward without hesitation, walking up to the unmoving mountain of steel. It didn’t move an inch, even when Fynn touched its arms.

Satisfied with that much, Scarlett walked out into the chamber as well and went past the construct. At the other end of the room was an elevated platform with a small altar on it. Resting on top of the altar was a small object the size of a hand, shaped like a rounded triangle. It had several intricate lines and symbols across its face, and looked like it might have fit together with two other pieces.

[Seal of Thainnith (1/3) (Unique)]
{A third of a whole. A seal upon that which cowered}

Scarlett paused. That was an…odd description. She wasn’t sure what it meant with "cowered" in this context. But being confused by the system wasn’t exactly something new.

She looked to the wall behind the altar, which was absolutely lined with the same kind of symbols, a large section of the wall’s center also being covered by what looked like a basic geographical map of the empire and its surrounding regions. There were several locations marked on the map.

Eyeing it for another moment, she then turned her attention back to the item on the altar. She didn’t really care about what the map was saying. That was for megalomaniacs and crazies.

She picked up the seal, placing it inside her pouch of holding.

[Quest completed: Assemble the Seal of Thainnith (1/3)]
{Skill points awarded: 4}

Oh? She got points for getting just one piece of the seal? That was nice.

She turned back to the others. "We are done here."

They gave her surprised looks.

"That’s all?" Rosa asked.

"It is, yes." Scarlett walked down from the altar.

"I was expecting a bit more after that opening."

"The purpose of this place did not extend further than safekeeping. It does not need to have more than this."

The look on Rosa’s face seemed a bit disappointed, but it wasn’t as if there was much to do about that.

Scarlett crossed the room, ready to leave, but stopped as she passed the magical construct at the center of the room. She eyed it for a short while.

Certain mages and wizards would no doubt go crazy over the possibility of getting their hands on something like this. Unfortunately, she couldn’t exactly bring it with her. And revealing this place to outsiders might not be the best idea. While it wasn’t a certainty, it was possible that it’d provoke the Hallowed Cabal, so it was best to let it be.

She glanced around the room and at the sconces that were spread around the walls. Well, the same couldn’t be said for all those.

"On second thought, before we leave, I want you all to collect those crystals and place them inside the storage bag."

If she wasn’t misremembering, those sold for a pretty penny.

Only after having ensured all the lights were gathered—which included the magical crystals that had powered the construct—did Scarlett leave with the others.

Exiting through the same gateway they had entered through, all of them stepped out beneath the large stone statue.

[Quest completed: Cleared the Crypt of Osen Allanar]
{Skill points awarded: 5}

"Oh?" a refined, mature voice called out from nearby. "Not quite who I was expecting. How disappointing."

They all spun around.

A short distance away stood a woman with a tall, lithe figure, covered by a gold-red robe. Its hood wrapped around her head, with the upper half of her face hidden by a white marble mask that had thick golden inlays that traced along the edges and the front, with deep scarlet rubies obscuring the eyes. Her skin beneath the mask was pale, almost white, and a small smile played across her deep-red lips.

Fynn took a step forward, letting out a low growl as he lowered into a fighting stance.

"Now, now," the woman said. In her right hand she held a long grey staff, its head a winding arrangement of curled bronze with a small azure gem in its crown. "Down boy."

As she said the words, the gem lit up a light blue. Fynn froze, his teeth bared, as he was locked into place.

"Those Grehaldraels really are all the same, aren’t they?" The woman shook her head. "All that thin air must be doing something to their heads."

Allyssa stared at Fynn’s unmoving figure. "What…!?"

Shin pulled out his sword and stepped up next to Fynn, holding his shield up to cover the rest of them.

The robed woman gave him an amused look. "Oh, look. Next is the Kereq. I’m sure that’ll go much better than for your little friend."

The crystal on her staff lit up once more. A moment later, a pale white sheen enveloped Shin’s shield and the young man was pulled to the ground like a stone.

"Shin!" Allyssa exclaimed. Scarlett held the girl back with a hand on her shoulder.

Kneeling on the ground, Shin tried—and failed—to pry his hands loose from the shield.

"Anyone else feel like testing their brilliant ideas?" the woman asked. "I’m more than happy to oblige, really. Perhaps I’ll even throw in a surprise or two this time."

Both Rosa’s and Allyssa’s eyes seemed locked on the women, but neither spoke up.

"No? Shame. I was starting to hope it might have been worth getting out of bed this morning."

The woman turned her attention towards Scarlett. "Now, who might you be?"

She had an almost alluring undertone to her voice, as she appeared to look over Scarlett. "I was expecting someone a bit… More. Not a…" she trailed off. "Well, maybe I’ll keep that to myself. I have a modicum of decency, at least. I’m sure."

Scarlett held her expression neutral.

Look at this woman, acting like she had no idea who she was. Or like this would have been the first time she’d seen her. But that’s about what one could expect.

"I am Baroness Scarlett Hartford." She gestured to the others. "And these are my retainers."

"A noble, hmm? Wasn’t expecting one of those around these parts. Especially not meddling with my plans."

Scarlett pulled out the Seal of Thainnith from her pouch. "I presume you are referring to me acquiring this?"

"Yes, yes. That." The woman waved her hand. "Not that there’s much other left in that dreary old cellar, other than that sorry excuse for a guardian and its afterlife tagalongs."

Afterlife…?

Oh, right. There had been ghosts present when you fought that boss in the game.

She had completely forgotten about that part.

"Now, be a good little noble and hand me that seal so I can erase your memories and return it to where it belongs." The woman held out her hand. "I’ll promise I won’t jumble things about too much. Or well, I’ll try at least."

…Scarlett wasn’t sure if the woman was serious or not.

"I have another proposal," she said, returning the seal to the pouch.

"I’m sure you have. And I happen to have a craving for poached dragon egg with a side of grask. Unfortunately there’s not a lot of that flying around."

"I believe this is something you will welcome," Scarlett said.

The robed woman studied her for a few seconds. "Why, aren’t you a confident? Usually I love myself a woman with a bit of aplomb, and I’m sure it’d be terribly fun, but I’m far too stingy for charity. Now, I’d prefer it if you didn’t make me do all the work."

"You have the Essence of Zenthas, do you not?"

The woman paused. A smirk grew across her lips. "I take it back. Maybe I can afford a smidge of generosity, just this once. Consider yourself honored."

Scarlett glanced at Fynn and Shin. "Before we continue, is it necessary to continue treating my retainers in this manner?"

"They’re spry young men. I’m sure they’ll be fine. Don’t go changing subjects and leave a girl hanging. You’ve got at least a finger’s worth of my curiosity raised, you know." The woman eyed her for a moment. "You’re not one of that old miscreant’s people, are you? I wouldn’t take a Grehaldrael to join. And I’d be even more disappointing now if you were."

Scarlett shook her head. "I am no one's person."

"Mmm, yes. It’s dreadfully drab, isn’t it?" The woman gestured at Scarlett with her hand. "Now, out with it. Tell me whatever trifling tactic you’ve got cooked up for yourself here. Don’t worry, I’m sure it won’t be that much more banal and crude than what I am used to hearing."

Scarlett stared at her with a cold look. In the game, this woman had been an entertaining character, but she wasn’t quite as charming when you were at the receiving end of her personality.

"It is simple," she said after a while. "You will hand me the Essence of Zenthas, and in return, I will give you the seal."

"Ah, I spoke too soon." The woman’s tone turned flat. "And here I was, going around catching expectations. One would think I’d know better at my age." She raised her staff. "Now, be a dear and hand me that dimensional bag of yours. I won’t pry too much. A lady’s privy to her secrets."

"I believe you misunderstand." Scarlett looked into the rubies that hid the woman’s eyes. "I did not say I would give you a piece of the Seal of Thainnith. I said I would give you the seal."

The staff paused, held still above the ground. "…Now, didn’t your mother teach you not to make promises you can’t keep?"

"True. Perhaps I should clarify." Scarlett pulled out the seal once again, holding it aloft. "In truth, this is the only piece I can give you. But what I am offering is not the seal itself, but rather the location of another piece, and the opportunity of retrieving the third. This should not differ much from your own plans, no?"

The woman slowly lowered her staff. "You sure do seem to know a lot, don’t you?"

"I make it a priority to be informed before I undertake any significant pursuits."

"Oh, I’m sure you do. And I do so love working with competent people." The woman stayed quiet for a while. The crystal on her staff lit up as Fynn was suddenly released from his stasis.

He stilled for a moment, then growled at the woman.

"Say, poodle-boy, what do you say of this master of yours words?"

Fynn blinked, gawking at her.

"Well?" She placed a hand against her hip. "I don’t have all day. Some of us have matters to tend to. Or at least pretend to tend to."

He glanced at Scarlett, who gave him a nod.

"…She’s telling the truth," he said.

"Is that so?" The masked woman seemed to return her attention to Scarlett. "Hmm. Well, I suppose that’ll do for now. Luckily for you, I’ve always had a penchant for striking deals that should probably be better left alone."

"So you will hand me the Essence?" Scarlett asked.

"Not like I have much more use for that rotten thing anymore. But that will have to wait a while." The woman seemed to grimace under her mask. "If I knew I’d need it, I wouldn’t have thrown it into that place."

Scarlett wasn’t sure where "that place" was, but she suspected she didn’t want to know. "After you have retrieved it, I will fulfill my end of the bargain. Until then, I presume you will not oppose me keeping the seal?"

The smile returned to the woman’s face. "You’re certainly trying to pique my interest, aren’t you? I’m dying to pick your brain."

She turned quiet, looking to the side for a moment. "That will have to wait until another time, unfortunately." She turned back to Scarlett. "The henhouse is calling."

She tapped her staff on the ground, and a shimmering gate appeared in the air beside her. She threw one last glance at Scarlett and the others. "Until next time."

She had stepped through the portal and it disappeared along with her. The next moment, Shin fell onto his back as his shield clattered to the ground.

The others stared at the space where the woman had been.

"…Who was that?" Allyssa eventually asked.

Scarlett returned the seal to the pouch. "My contingency."

This story started on Royal Road. Come read thousands of other novels today!