Marius
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"Boss, can I ask you one question?" He dared speak.
"Yes, Marius. What can I do for you?" Sitting on her chair, the guilldmaster stared at the horizon, probably a failed attempt to ignore her dilapidated collection of illegally acquired antiques. They were illegally acquired by the guest that'd just vacated the room. Or maybe not as illegally, seeing that the guildmaster handed them over with a smile. He tried to figure out if stealing from [Thieves] was illegal, but he couldn't reach an answer.
"Why did you agree to everything the cat asked? Was that some kind of trick?" He had to ask. Marius was shocked and afraid of how the old lady would react. She seemed to be in a daze.
She stood from her chair, walked around the desk, and slapped Marius. "Marius, we are in the Scorched Continent. Let me tell you. Do you remember Virturia?"
"I do. Some old kingdom from when I was a kid. A lot of people died and some Duke took over the crown."
She sucked in a large breath. Marius could hear some wheezing. Septum issues, for sure. "Marius, the new [King] adopted the old name for that place. Ackerton. For the last decade, I studied the old legends. Ackerton was a name associated with many things, not only an old Kingdom. Right after he was coronated, an old [Assassin] organization came out of the shadows after hundreds of years and started to murder the shit out of not only their hired targets but also whoever crossed them. Do you remember any old stories about legendary [Assassins], Marius?"
"The [Death Princess] series?" Marius snorted.
She nodded. "What shape did the [Death Princess] liked to take when carrying her missions?"
"I'm afraid I don't remember."
They reached the main room. The old woman looked around and called one of the [Thieves] loitering and drinking the guild's booze."Hey, Hubert! Do you remember a story with the Death Princess and demons?"
The slightly intoxicated rascal raised his mug. "Yes, a crazy one by some bard named after a nut where the [Death Princess] was also the First [Hero]. I read part of it, all bullshit."
"Are they?" She asked, clearly not believing what he said. She left Hubert alone and waved for Marius to follow her, "Funny, because those assassins wiped out all demon worshippers I knew of. The ritual component trade is dying, some fences are losing stock that cannot be preserved."
"I don't see why are you so worried. That wasn't an [Assassin]. You said so, it was just some mage's familiar. These stories are fairy tales!"
She clocked him, sending the [Spotter] spinning to the ground. "No, they're not, especially that last one!" Wheezing after her outburst, she explained with a trembling voice. "Marius. I'll tell you this only once. In this continent, people in our line of business do not cross talking black cats. Be glad she decided to let us live. Now, come. We need to gather everyone and convey her orders."
He stood up and followed her back to the office, noticing that for the first time in his career, he saw his boss genuinely afraid. "Was that cat the real deal?"
She didn't turn back and went back to her chair, sitting on it and lowering her head. Marius only heard what she whispered next because of his ridiculous collection of perception Perks. "Hope we never find out."
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Adyra looked at the merchant ship. She wanted to burn, or maybe raise the ocean to swallow and sink the vessel. She was done with the surface world. She was beginning to loathe that petty, filthy, treacherous, and outright stupid place.
The guards had thanked her for the herbs. She made a mental note to find a way to preserve them for trade. Maybe ask Arista later. The fight with the [Rogues] drew more guards to the scene and she promptly drafted them into helping her. She now had more than thirty guardsmen backing her.
A man wearing fancy merchant clothes came running, pushing through the crowd watching the scene, and putting himself between Arista, the sergeants, and the ship. He was clearly protecting the vessel.
"What is happening here?" He asked.
"Sir, we--" The newcomer sergeant started to talk but was cut off by an angry [Princess].
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"Is this your boat?" She asked, her choice of words intentional.
"Ship, miss. What is your business with us?" He examined her from top to bottom.
Adyra didn't feel any {Appraise} attempts, but she knew some people could do it without raising suspicion. She kept her attention on his reactions. Once he made eye contact again, the merchant froze for a brief moment, narrowed his eyes, and creased his eyebrows.
The mermaid smiled, "I think you know why we are here. Why don't you tell us?"
"I have no idea what you are talking about, miss," he lied with an impeccable poker face.
She glared at him, "This is a {Royal Order}. Did you transport kidnapped mermaids in your ship?"
> Contested Charisma check lost.
He took a step back, feigning surprise. "No, we didn't! That's an absurd allegation! We only deal with legal merchandise."
She knew she'd lost the exchange. Now she had to do damage control. "Say, mister..."
"O'Donnell. Mike O'Donnell at your service, Your Highness."
She approached the man until she was too close for comfort. His comfort. Adyra wasn't bothered to be this close to a man, if anything it made her more curious. Doing her best to look friendly, she asked in a low voice.
"Master O'Donnell, if I were to look for kidnapped mermaids, where should I go?" She averted his eyes for a moment and was a couple finger's width from his face the next. "If you helped me, I am sure Atlantis would be grateful to extend some advantages to such a valuable business partner. Was your last trip enjoyable? profitable? What about the next?"
The implied threat was obvious. Help and get rewarded, screw it up more, and get obliterated. The merchant's poker face slowly eroded. Adyra could practically feel the man's basal instincts overtaking his mind. Such was the power mermaids naturally exerted on mortal men, especially one as gorgeous as their [Princess]. To the young woman, it was only natural to use such tactics.
"The Lord of this city will host an auction in five days," he finally conceded the second round. "All kinds of exotic goods and treasures will be sold there."
Adyra's face turned from friendly and seductive to angry and dangerous. "Including people? {Tell me}!"
> Contested Charisma check won.
>
> Royal Order increased by 2 points.
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O'Donnell
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He fought against the Skill but lost. O'Donnell was sure he couldn't fool the girl in front of him, no matter how low-level and naive she was. Lengthening the scene also damaged his reputation, as people were already spreading rumors. He had to cut his losses.
"Yes. Some volunteers from distant places," he lied as his last-ditch attempt. His first word had already fulfilled the {Royal Order}. Seeing that she didn't fall for it, he changed gears. "Your Highness, is there any way we can salvage my company's relationship with your kingdom?"
The princess grinned then giggled. "Of course I'm willing," she said, the double entendre spreading goosebumps over his arms. "Master O'Donnell seems a man who prizes profit, right?"
"Of course," he said with a flourish, thinking he was winning her over.
She turned a hundred-eighty and whispered softly, "Also a man that hates losses, right? Your ship seems so flammable. It would be terrible if it burned down, along with your company's buildings and offices. You see, we mermaids think of each other as family. I'm so distressed about the loss of my sisters that I might lose control over my magic."
"I beg your pardon, Your Highness?" He was now very worried. Although he thought he could defeat a spellcaster a third of his level, he couldn't do so in front of two guard squads and all the onlookers. Not to mention he knew they wouldn't send her here alone. He couldn't sense her chaperone but he was sure it was somewhere.
He closed his eyes for a moment and remembered rumors he heard while trading with the mermaids. Of a time when he had one of the fish-woman as a mercenary guard on his ship years ago. This young girl was the daughter of one of Virturia's sailors, captured years ago. He heard rumors of the mermaids' first princess. If a tenth of the tall tales were true, he was doomed.
"I don't take you for a fool, master O'Donnell. So please don't insult me," she replied harshly. "I may be young, naive even. But by Wyxnos' necktie, I've put more than a fair share of my Attribute Points in Mind."
"Your High--"
"Captive Mermaids," she cut him off, now completely pissed. "You brought them here in your boat, I am sure of it. They aren't here anymore, I'm also sure of it. Where? Try to fool me again, and losing your business will be the least of your worries."
"I'll help you," he surrendered. "In exchange, I only beg for Your Highness' mercy."
Adyra took a step away from him. "We shall see..."
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Back in her room, Adyra discarded her composure. The girl threw herself on the bed, tossing the pillow against the wall and screaming. Nobody, not even dogs could hear her high-pitched complaints.
"You did fine, great even, out there," Nenandil appeared next to her and took a strand of the princess' hair to play with.
"I thought I was dead. Dead. That man looked so dangerous!" She whimpered.
"Yet you survived," the fairy comforted. "Your sister sometimes says, 'fake it until you make it'," she spoke in English. "It means that if you pretend to be something hard enough, you'll eventually develop the skills to actually be that."
"I need to level up," Adyra complained. "Rank up, get more Attributes and Perks."
"That's nice, but it is far from what you really need. Raw power without the wisdom and experience to put it to use is worthless," Nenandil explained. "Back in Windemere, we killed monsters in a Dungeon until we raised people from level zero all the way to the end of the second tier. These people were like newborn babies for a while, unable to cope with their power, unable to use a fraction of what someone their level could do. Trust me, if it were so easy, Arista would've taken you to level up in some Dungeon years ago."
Adyra sniffled, "Yet she decided to bring me here."
"Yes. Too many Royals became intoxicated by their fast rise to power, the easy levels, ranks, Perks, and powers. Trust us, you don't want to be one of them."
She wiped a tear. "I want to be like my sister."
Nenandil met her eyes and nodded her tiny head.
"I'll need a gown if we are to attend the auction," Adyra said.
The fairy giggled, "I know an excellent seamstress."