Anton is coming home.

The thought stayed with Suliel as she worked diligently for the betterment of her barony. His barony, now. She was working on behalf of her husband. That thought sent a thrill through her that she wouldn’t have understood a year ago. Back then she’d been fuming at the knowledge that she was to be married off to some noble who would inherit her father’s lands. That her duties would be reduced to managing her household and serving her husband in the bedroom.

That all changed when it was Anton. The boy that she’d dreamed about was now the man that was her lord. Even more wonderfully, he trusted her with Kirido. To rule it in his absence. Not in the paternalistic way that her father had let her play at command, being watched over and evaluated. Anton admitted that she was more suited for the role and supported all her decisions.

The link that they shared via Kelsey wasn’t the most reliable of communication channels, but Suliel knew that, had he wanted to, Anton could have had her pass all the decisions to him. Instead, he’d let her make the calls and only asked Kelsey for the details after the fact.

It filled Suliel with a fierce sense of pride as well as a burning desire to make sure that his trust was not misplaced. Now that her introductions had been completed, Suliel could make most of the arrangements needed by correspondence. She spent much of the morning writing letters. Lunch and dinner were for making connections with her fellow nobles.

Invitations were flowing in now that she’d been accepted by the King. Most of them were meaningless, just distant cousins looking to capitalise on a connection, or fellow vassals of Lord Brankil looking to sound her out on the minor factional disputes within the county. For the most part, Suliel could just attend, smile, and nod.

Her retainers would prefer that she did not attend at all, on account of some trifling kidnapping attempt.

“Honestly, my Lady, do you really have to go?” Syon said despairingly. “You’re trying to project an aloof persona, it wouldn’t hurt to skip a few parties.”

“I need to be seen to be aloof,” Suliel replied. “If I don’t go, I merely seem unsociable.”

Syon’s face twitched as the desire to scold her warred with his sense of propriety. As her father’s chamberlain, he had often been the one to catch and discipline Suliel when she got into childish mischief. Now he served her. He never forgot himself, but sometimes he looked like he wanted to.

“Bah! Can you talk some sense into her?” Syon asked his companion.

“I fear not.” Guildmaster DelirNyer bowed to her. He was not one of her retainers, but he’d been acting as one. “Though I would add my cautions to those of my colleague. Someone is clearly trying to capture you, my lady. You should not make it easier for them.”

“I’m confident in the protections you have in place,” Suliel said airily. Delir sighed.

“Then at least accept this,” he said, holding out a bracelet. It was a simple thing: a large stone, or more likely cut glass, dangling from a silver chain.

Suliel raised her eyebrows in surprise. “You have a lot to learn about giving ladies jewellery, Guildmaster,” she said.

Delir gave her a sour look but kept his feelings to himself. “It’s a security precaution, my lady. The stone glows in the presence of magic.”

Suliel looked at him doubtfully but reached out to take the bracelet. As she did so, the stone started to glow. Faintly at first, then growing stronger as she grasped it.

Kelsey sent, and had her answer immediately as the crystal glowed more strongly.

“An obvious magical effect might explain why I’m wearing something so obviously out of fashion,” Suliel allowed. “But I’m not sure of what use it will be if it always glows.”

“It’s additive,” Delir explained. “It will glow more strongly if it detects additional magic.”

“Oh, I see,” Suliel said. She reached out to the Lazybones. They weren’t in the room with her, but she could still give them orders. The stone brightened as the link grew stronger. “But… I’m making it glow with a Trait, not magic. Does that mean my Traits are magic?”

“Most Traits hold a little bit of magic,” Delir told her. “Some are more magical than others and yours are… very magical. A wizard’s magic is even stronger.”

“I doubt they’ll send another wizard after me,” Suliel said. “Not after what happened to the first one.”

“Perhaps,” Delir admitted. “If it’s the Wizard’s Guild after you, though, they might have wizards to spare, and not much else in the way of options. As it happens, I have some news on that front.”

“Oh?”

“Since that first attack on the carriage, I’ve been asking around about any contracts that might be out on you.”

Suliel frowned. “I thought you were looking for information on blue gods.”

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“You can’t just talk about one thing if you want to be subtle,” Delir said, winking, “People will think you’re after something.”

“I suppose that’s true,” Suliel admitted.

“As you might suspect, the Guild doesn’t accept jobs involving kidnapping or murder.”

“Of course not,” Suliel agreed. Bounties and town defence were one thing, but if adventurers became nothing more than murderers for hire, there was no point in licensing them.

“However, some adventurers do take such jobs, and they talk about them. Not in the guildhall as a rule, but in taverns where other adventurers can hear them. Those adventurers will sometimes report on what they’ve heard.”

“And what have you heard,” Suliel asked warily.

“That there is, indeed, a contract for your capture. 100 gold. Alive.”

Suliel thought about it. That wasn’t a princely sum. Many nobles could afford to pay more to have their enemies disposed of in that way. Few did; the risks of failure or discovery were high unless you contracted with…

“Are the Shadowblades going to get involved?” she asked. That would change things.

“It’s unlikely,” Delir assured her. “The Shadowblades only deal in murder, and this party wants you alive.”

“Why?”

“I can only speculate, but aside from concerns about their image, the Shadowblades are probably worried about crimes that involve surviving witnesses.”

“No, I mean, why do they want me alive?”

Delir shrugged. “Again, I have only speculation. A week ago, I would have assumed it meant your mother was behind this, but you have come to an accord, have you not?”

“To an extent,” Suliel said thoughtfully. It could be her mother. She would want Suliel alive. But when the King had accepted Suliel’s Class, he had destroyed most of her mother’s position. The marriage was done, now, and her mother seemed to be trying to come to terms with that.

Who else? It could be the King, suspecting her of treachery but not wanting to make an overt declaration. He could seek to imprison and question her secretly.

Would the King operate through street-level thugs, though? Suliel didn’t think so. He had access to far more dependable resources. The wizard seemed more like the sort of person the King would hire. Could there be two groups after her?

Suliel shook her head. This speculation was getting her nowhere. “Can we get any information out of the Wizard’s Guild?” she asked.

“No,” Delir said flatly. “Not if they’re behind this, and even if they’re not… they don’t allow outsiders to pry into their business.”

“I suppose we’ll have to rely on the Rose Circle for information then,” Suliel said. She didn’t like that idea, but perhaps she should think of it as a chance for the secret society to prove themselves trustworthy.

“Then, will you wear it, my lady?” Delir asked, looking pointedly at the bracelet.

“I suppose so,” Suliel said. “It has to be a bracelet, though?”

“You won’t be able to see it on a necklace,” Delir pointed out. “A ring would work but—”

“No,” Suliel said. “It’s gaudy enough as it is. If it was a broach, I could pin it to my sleeve… no, a bracelet will do.”

“Thank you, my lady. Just remember to keep it in sight.”

Suliel slipped the bracelet on, looking at it disdainfully. “Since you mentioned your efforts at the Guild, have they borne any fruit?”

“I’m afraid not, my lady,” Delir said. “While I haven't exhausted every avenue yet, thus far I haven’t found anything to contradict what I told you the first time. Demons are blue-skinned, gods are not.”

Kelsey sent.

Suliel felt her stomach churn at the thought.

“My lady?” Delir asked in alarm.

“It’s nothing,” Suliel told him. “Just something Kelsey said. Is it possible that all the gods are nothing more than demons?”

“Surely not,” Delir said. His face showed his doubt, but his words were clear. “The enmity of the gods and demons is long established, as is the benevolence of the gods versus the malevolence of the demons. It’s possible that they might have a… common origin, but the differences between them are as night and day.”

“Perhaps to humans,” Delir said when the question was relayed. “Or to an isolated dungeon. Not to the gods, though… surely."

“What about the fairies?” Suliel asked. “Mel seemed… worshipful of Riadi in that scene you showed me.”

Kelsey sent.

“That’s a terrifying thought,” Suliel said. She spoke aloud so Syon and Delir could hear her. “Maybe we should take this to one of the churches.”

Kelsey asked.

“I know, but if they are, we don’t lose anything, do we?” Suliel asked. “They already know that we’re on to Riadi. And if they aren’t, we can get help.”

“I think we’d get help regardless,” Delir said. “The problem is, if they are secretly demons, that help will be primed to sabotage us somehow.”

Kelsey asked.

“That might change with a demon impersonating them. It might be operating on the same… plane of their existence.” Delir said thoughtfully. “A demon impersonating a god. There are stories, legends that I can look up.”

“That tells of how to deal with a demon?” Suliel asked hopefully.

“There are such stories,” Delir said. “They are always couched in vague terms. Myths, rather than instructions.”

Kelsey said. Suliel relayed her words.

Delir nodded. “I’ll see if I can get you a text on the subject, but in simple terms…” He paused for thought. “To start with, you need a Hero.”

“The Hero has to draw the demon out,” Delir continued. “How he does that varies in the stories. When the demon comes forth, the Hero confronts the demon. They may fight, but the conflict is never decisive. The demon always retreats, but somehow the Hero gets a trail to follow.”

“Somehow?” Suliel asked.

“It varies. Sometimes the demon leaves a trail of blood, sometimes it taunts the Hero with clues to follow. Or the Hero might glean some clue from the demon’s appearance. However he does it, he follows the clues to the place.”

Kelsey said. Suliel could feel that Kelsey was suddenly very interested.

“Again, it varies, and is almost always vaguely described,” Delir said. “It’s a place from which the demon can’t run.”

Kelsey, or rather Suliel asked.

“Oh no, he almost always gathers a questing party to follow him,” Delir said. “Depending on the legend, there’s specific symbology for each of the Hero’s followers.”

“And then?” Suliel asked.

“They fight the demon and win,” Delir said. “I don’t think the win is automatic, though. They just don’t write legends about unsuccessful Heroes.”