As soon as they stepped through the door, Dover was immediately impressed by the luxury. Any doubt about Driks’s identify could easily be countered by the visible wealth. That just left a question as to whether he’d been truthful about the treatment of his “guests”.
A woman was impatiently waiting in the hallway, her foot tapping out a mixture of worry and annoyance. She had the air of a guildkeeper or head of a household and was holding a basket with a strange mix of items. She had numerous healing herbs and potions as well as books and assorted writing materials.
She was accompanied by another woman who was wearing a hastily equipped suit of leather armor. It was custom made, thought of surprisingly low quality for the home of a lord. Her sword was the real thing though, it's fine crafting apparent at a glance. She carried herself as a fighter, but her movements were stiff and untrained.
Both women watched the two men as they approached, the first one giving a vaguely disapproving glance to Dover before focusing on Driks. The swordswoman did the opposite, she glanced over Driks, making sure he was alive, before carefully sizing up Dover. Dover’s lips curled up in a slight smile of approval, though she wasn’t properly trained, or equipped, she had the potential to be a good fighter. Also, based on what he saw, she probably could, and undoubtedly has, beaten sense into Driks in the past. Neither woman seemed to be there against their will.
“Ladies, permit me to introduce our visitor,” Driks began. “This rough-shod fellow is a woodsman of some skill who soundly beat my tail.”
Gesturing at the studious looking woman, who was glaring daggers at Dover following Driks’s introduction, he continued. “This is Fawn, of Shallow Brook. She handles most of my household’s business affairs.” He then pointed towards the now smirking swordswoman and introduced her as well. “Sophia, of Solomon Pond, is the head of my personal guard, such as it is. Both women joined me several years ago.”
“Fawn, would you be so kind as to make arrangements for a feast tonight? I’d like to demonstrate to our guest that everyone is here willingly and see if anyone wishes to leave the villa with him.”
“I’d rather make this quick...” Dover began.
“Nonsense! We have much to discuss! I’m sure I can make the visit worthwhile to you.” With that he drew a nondescript object from a pocket and tossed it towards Dover.
Reflexively catching it, Dover paused to examine it, eyes widening when he realized it was a dragon scale.
“I will literally pay you a pound of flesh to stay the night.” Driks said with a laugh. “Or to be more accurate, provide you with enough dragon scale to allow you to fully upgrade your armor.”
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Dover reluctantly agreed, it was literally a priceless offer.
While Fawn made preparations for the feast, and Sophia followed along like a respectable honor guard, Driks gave Dover a tour of his underground castle. Everyone they encountered was a woman. In fact, according to Driks, the two of them were the only men ever to walk these halls. Driks introduced all his guests without hesitation, sharing who they were, where they were from and how long they had been there. He didn’t hesitate to answer any questions Dover asked. He even went so far as to respectfully introduce the servants and explain the terms of their contracts.
Though they didn't look too closely, so as to not disturb the women who were training, Driks gave a quick tour of the barracks. Dover was impressed by the quality of the training equipment and weapons, though less impressed by the obviously self taught training routine.
Past the barracks was the dormitory wing. There everyone had their own rooms, which Driks did not show out of respect for their privacy. He did show Dover several empty rooms as well as both Sophia and Fawn’s rooms. The rooms were large and fairly simple. They had good quality rugs and each person could decorate as they saw fit. Fawn’s room had a large painting of Driks in front of a desk cluttered with papers. It was more of an office than a bedroom. Sophia’s room was fairly spartan, with simple furniture and a workbench with various leather scraps on it.
Continuing the tour, Dover was shown a fully equipped blacksmith and tannery, though neither seemed as if they saw any recent use. Also, despite the fact that spellcasters typically kept their magical lodges very secret, Driks even guided Dover through his. The final stop before dinner was the library, which was full of books on all topics imaginable. It was also where his most recent guest could be found. Having seen a portrait of the girl at Woodridge village, it was clear this was indeed the chief's daughter. Watching her from a distance before approaching, it was obvious she was truly happy being surrounded by all these books. No magic could compel the level of joy which was present on her face.
As they headed towards the dining hall, Dover considered the layout. While there undoubtedly were some secret rooms present, all castles have them, he was confident he saw most of the lair. It was particularly notable that there were no signs of a dungeon or a place to question prisoners. While there could be one in another castle, this appeared to be truly a safe haven for its guests.
Dinner further confirmed his analysis. The women were certainly more nervous around Dover than they were of Driks. When given the chance to leave, most firmly refused. To prevent any future rescue attempts, it was decided that Dover would escort the few women who were ready to leave to Woodridge village and that the rest would write home. These letters would also be signed with Driks's personal sigil to prove their authenticity and vouch for their safety.
Once the handling of the women was hashed out, Driks turned his attention to enlisting Dover's services. One of his guests was interested in leather working but did not have a proper teacher. Additionally Sophia, as well a few others, needed proper weapons training. Dover was literally his only option, and he wasn't going to let the chance slip through his fingers. Surprisingly, even to himself, Dover agreed to return for a brief period and teach them.
All in all, Dover’s only complaint after the tour was that he couldn't add “Dragonslayer” to his list of accomplishments... Yet.