"That's not a village," Cerise said when they spotted the wooden walls of the Sea Crest Dungeon Village.

Jaxin laughed, then laughed harder when he saw the agreeing looks on her family members' faces. He calmed down to chuckling, and said, "It can't be a town until it's been established for at least ten years, and Sea Crest is only maybe four years old. It is bigger than a typical village, but it hasn't quite grown to town sized. Not yet."

Cerise took down her Triage Aura, just to be safe, and they made their way all together to the gate into the town. Two men in matching hardened leather plate stood on either side of the opened gate, and a guard tower was visible on the inside of the village wall.

"Hail and state your business," one of the guards said, stepping forward to block the gate.

Heral stepped his horse to the front. "These good freemen intend to take up residency, and my cousins and I shall remain to train in the dungeon until such time as we are recalled to our lands."

"The entrance fee is a large for each person and a grand for each horse. Are those ... those almiraj are tamed? They're a leaf a piece," the guard said. "And you will need to peace-bind all your weapons while within the town limits."

Heral narrowed his eyes. "My name, as you so obviously failed to use an Inspect skill, is Heral el-Treborant, and my first stop will be to deliver letters of Introduction from Hirsel Velton and Cyr Megare to Knight-Protector Sir Brais. When I ask him about these entrance fees, will he confirm that you are asking for the correct amounts?"

The guard swallowed and Cerise felt his Identify flow over all of them. He looked nervous after Identifying Heral, but paled on Identifying Cerise, Mykhal, and Jaxin.

"Ah, um. Did-- Did I say a leaf? I meant a leaf will cover your entire party," he back tracked..

"And how many others?" Heral asked, quirking an eyebrow.

The other guard stepped up. "Keit, you're an idiot. Honorable el-Treborant is an expected guest of our Knight-Protector. Apologize for failing to remember he is on the guest list, and hence no entrance fees are due from his party."

The guard called Keit stammered out an apology, accompanied by a bow, and stepped out of their way.

The second guard gave them directions to Sir Brais's manor.

Cerise Appraised both guards. "Keit" was actually Keiteral and the other was named Gaboral.

Jaxin broke away at the first branch in the street, saying he would see them at the Free Lancers Guild.

They hadn't gone very far when a young boy darted past them. Cerise spotted that same boy leaving from a side door at the manor estate they eventually arrived at.

Heral drew up before the guards at the estate gate and held up a calming hand as he peered down the drive visible beyond the gate. A man in a fancy jacket was Quick Stepping their way.

The guards looked a bit nervous. For their benefit, Heral said, "I believe our escort is on the way."

Cerise smiled at one of the gate guards. "Please pardon me for my ignorance. In our travels, I've found people who find it rude to use Inspect skills on strangers and those who find it rude not to Inspect strangers, as well as those who don't care either way. What is the predominant attitude in Sea Crest?"

The gate guard returned Cerise's smile with a tight-lipped one of her own. "Inspecting without permission is rude."

"Thank you for remedying my ignorance," Cerise said with a polite incline of her head.

Heral looked with surprise to Cerise, but before he could speak, the man in the jacket arrived.

"Honorable el-Treborant! What a pleasure it is that you have finally arrived! Open the gates for our Honorable guests!" the man smiled broadly in a way that didn't reach his eyes. "Sir Brais has been quite excited about your visit to our humble village! I'm his Aide Isbrigal! We'll get your horses seen to, show you to your rooms, settle your servants--."

"I did not bring any servants," Heral said.

Cerise smiled kindly and said, "You have my permission to Inspect me."

The Aide paused, looked uncertainly from Heral to Cerise, then fired off his Inspect skill. His smile became even more of a grimace as color fled his cheeks. He bowed, hands braced on his knees. "My apologies, Lady ban Silverwood. I meant no disrespect!"

"It's Miss, not Lady, and there's no need for apologies. You did nothing wrong. My parents here can tell you how very new this all is for all of us, and there is so much Etiquette to learn! It gets a little overwhelming. Honestly, right now if you want to offend me, you're going to have to work at it. It's just so much easier to assume good intentions."

Aide Isbrigal rose from his bow looking more relaxed than when he greeted them. "You honor me with the generosity of your spirit."

"That is a lovely phrasing! I'm going to add that to my list of ways to say thank you!" Cerise tried to put an infectious joy into her smile, and she counted it a win when the Aide's return smile reached his eyes.

As they got back under way, Cerise tried to imitate her mother's friendly attitude as she introduced each member of their party. As soon as her mother was pulled into the conversation, Cerise got to relax. Aide Isbrigal turned out to enjoy recreational fishing and was happy to educate her mother on the types of fish they could find locally.

Stolen novel; please report.

"The cliffs around here far outnumber the ocean front beaches, so the ocean fish we get fresh primarily comes from the dungeon's fourth floor. We are twelve or thirteen leagues to Port Gyolgoin, two days by wagon, so salted ocean fish is easy to obtain."

A large man near her father's age awaited them on the steps leading up to the manor's front door. He wore mostly leather clothing of fine quality, and looked more at home with a club than a quill. Aide Isbrigal smoothly introduced Sir Brais to everyone, and the knight failed to keep the surprise, or unease, off his face when his aide introduced Cerise.

"My apologies, Miss ban Silverwood. It will be a bit to fix up rooms for your party as I did not know to expect you. Normally, I would try to give you time to refresh yourselves from your journey before discussing business," Sir Brais said.

Cerise offered up her cheerful smile. "Well, we have some Letters of Introduction to share to you, as well as some need of direction. Probably a story or two as well. If it's not too much of an inconvenience, I think my family and I are up for that business first before figuring out our accommodations. I wouldn't presume to speak for the Honorable Cousins Treborant."

Heral smiled his own kind smile. "Your assistance on our travels have made them quite refreshing. Whatever schedule best suits our host would be most agreeable."

"Then please allow my House Master to see you settled into your rooms while I speak with Miss ban Silverwood and her family," Sir Brais said.

Not long after, Cerise, her parents, and Mykhal were seated in a study that seemed spartan in comparison to the noble studies she had had to sit in throughout the journey here. It was still far nicer than any of the inns they had stayed in, let alone their home in Trall.

They enjoyed a bit of silence while Sir Brais read the letters and looked over the Writs of Residency Lord Jedais gave them. The Letters hadn't been sealed, so their contents were known to her family.

"That is quite a journey you've been on," Sir Brais commented when he set the letters aside, returning the writs to them.

Cerise nodded and smiled. "I think the most amazing part of it all, at least for me, is that the Winter Solstice is just a little over a month away and we're not neck deep in snow."

Sir Brais barked out a laugh. "I've heard of snow, but aside from white caps on distant mountain peaks, I've never seen any."

"We haven't yet seen the ocean," Cerise said.

A distant touch of awe relaxed the Knight's features. "It is a humbling experience, even for those of us who live by the coast." His posture shifted as he returned his focus to the room. "Do you plan to claim the full forty fields for your diplomatic residence?"

Cerise grew serious. "Frankly, until I feel capable of defending the land, I don't plan to claim any of it. Our intent is for my parents to purchase the land they can make use of, and for Mykhal and me to lease from them while we train and grow stronger. If I receive any different instructions from the Lady of the Silverwood Grove, well, then our plans will change."

Sir Brais nodded. "That is wise." He looked to her parents. "Do you intend to farm?"

Her father said, "Not beyond our needs. I heard there's mining to be done in the dungeon. If it is safe enough and profitable enough, well, I find mining to be a good fit for me, and Bergin has dreamed of opening her own Food Hall, however they're called around here."

Sir Brais's eyebrows rose with interest. "You have Intermediate skill with Cooking?"

"Expert, actually. I've been getting synergistic experience from learning Alchemy on our journey," her mother answered, almost bashful.

Eagerness widened the knight's gaze, and his mouth opened. Then he seemed to recall something that took the excitement out of him. Not all the way, however. "I shall be delighted to try your cuisine," he said. Then he sighed and turned back to Cerise. "Well, it was too much to hope that I could make use of your diplomatic residence to form a hard boundary for the town's expansion toward the dungeon."

"Oh?" Cerise tried to do that thing her mother did, that interested lean forward that invited people to continue on and confide in her.

Sir Brais's expression took on elements of frustration. "Everytime I get the walls expanded to include plots for farming, the Free Lancers lead the charge to build more inns and smithies and craft halls. I appreciate the commerce, but we have to feed everyone, and they're encouraging people to buy up all the best farm land for non-farming purposes! It's very frustrating!"

Cerise's odd memory fragments suggested something. "I'm not clear on the laws of Druerjan, Velton, or the Megare Cyrlands. As the knight-protector, do you work with a mayor or village chief to plan the development of Sea Crest town? If so, what prevents you from plotting certain zones out for particular purposes?"

Cerise's father added, "As someone without a combat class, I cannot imagine too many [Farmers] want to be closer to a place that's known to spawn monsters when they could have an entire village's worth of [Warriors] between them and danger, regardless of soil quality."

Cerise's mother said, "Improving soil is one thing [Alchemists] learn early and while there are some faster ways than mixing rotting cuttings into the soil, that only takes a season to show results."

The knight smiled. "You're solutions people! How pleasant! As for the purpose set zones, the problems is that the penalty for not complying with such zoning is a fine which they're happy to pay. I hadn't heard of improving soil."

Something else tickled Cerise's curiosity. "How far is the Sea Crest Dungeon from the Village?"

"Two leagues or there-abouts, which is why I'm looking for a better excuse to halt the Free Lancers from expanding that way. If they had their way, they would build all the way to the miss-begotten entrance and damn the consequences!"

Cerise and her family exchanged surprised looks. Her mother said, "Up on the Northern border, it's most common for people to gain their classes from holy places. When I learned that most people south of the Katias Hirsellands gained their classes in dungeons, I thought that dungeons might be a different kind of holy place. Northern holy places require at least three and better five leagues of wild lands around them to stay benign."

"Benign, how?" Sir Brais asked, intrigued.

"Gods defend their holy places from, how did the Sol-el put it? Murky intent?" her father chimed in. "If people build too close, there will be more spawn points that show up between the people and the holy place. If you build right next to a holy place, and try to live there, the holy place seals itself away, and no one gains classes there any more."

Sir Brais took up a resigned expression. "One league is the minimum no-build rule for dungeons in Druerjan by the laws based on the last Dungeon Covenant. The king his majesty Ahrahm has decreed that we shall uphold all such laws until a new covenant is affirmed."

A servant tapped the door and poked his head in. "Rooms for your guests have been prepared, Sir."

"Ah, good! You will stay with me while you search for a plot for your permanent residences, won't you?" Sir Brais invited.

Cerise gave him a bright smile. "We would be honored."

"Please allow my man to show you to your rooms. I planned for dinner to be served en suite tonight, and breakfast should be available near an hour after sunrise on the morrow. I'll have one of my aides escort you to the Mayor's Hall and go with you for picking out your land plots."

Cerise glanced to Mykhal, then back to Sir Brais. "I think the Hirsel Veltan mentioned that Mykhal and I joined the Free Lancers Guild a week before I earned the ban Silverwood name. We are a copper rank duo, essentially very new and still proving our reliability, so we have commissions to turn in some time tomorrow.

"For what it's worth, I have no intention of being drawn into any disputes with the Free Lancers Guild that do no directly involve my team, and should I get sucked in anyhow, my sympathies prioritize the defense of the town."

Sir Brais nodded. "I appreciate that."

They retired to the rooms prepared for them in short order.