Helena sighed. “I suppose I should tell you about him. Leo is ambitious, his whole family is. He wants our county to become part of his duchy. Part of the plan is to marry me. I would not be surprised if my brother had an accident soon after. There are a surprising amount of deaths that benefit Leo’s family.”

“Why does he want your county?” Cassie asked.

“Several reasons. He wants a good connection to Thorus for trade. We also have a border that sees quite a bit of fighting against monsters, so he could petition the king for an increased personal army. Further, we are known for our strong water affinity. It is what makes us rather powerful in the snow. He wants our magic to strengthen his line. Even better, we don’t have that much influence. Most nobles want to increase their prestige with their marriage, he does not. His family is already important enough, he wants more actual strength. And less scrutiny.”

“What do you mean by that?” I asked.

“Leo is not a good person. He is rather polite in public but he is brutal. When I was twelve, a waiter spilled something on his clothes at a party. He smiled and said it was fine. But later, when I was going to the restroom, I overheard him talking to the guards. He ordered that servant beaten. I have heard a lot of other rumours since then, about how he treats his staff and slaves.”

“Typical noble.” Skadi muttered.

“We are not all that bad.” Helena said.

“A lot are though.” Cassie admitted. “That's why I don’t want to play their game. I just want a nice life, full of explosions!”

Helena continued: “Anyway, I don't want to marry someone like that. I doubt he would treat his wife well. There are also some rumours about his father and how he treats his concubines...”

“If he tries anything, we will feed him to Nyx.” I announced. My undead companion was curled up next to the fire. Her head moved slightly, so she was paying attention.

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“And Archibald is the son of Duke Winston, your liege lord. He might try to convince his father to sell your county to Duke Harold. Then Leo could put pressure on your father. Quite the mess.” Cassie said.

“Leo has offered me resources for necromancy in the past.” I mentioned.

“He wants to use you too. Having an archmage necromancer on his side would give him a lot of power.”

“I would not be surprised if he wants a harem.” Skadi said.

I looked at her, shocked.

“What? He is a sleazebag. Imagine if he could get Helena and you. You would be his attack dogs, his warrior wives. Generals of his army. As long as you obey him, obviously.”

“Is that a thing?” I asked.

“Not really. Skadi reads too many stories.” Cassie said. “You can only marry one person, legally. But a lot of powerful people have concubines. The reason you can only marry one is due to inheritance. It would get too complicated otherwise.”

“That is also why same sex marriages are frowned upon by nobility. They don’t produce heirs. If you fancy someone of your own gender, you are supposed to have them as a concubine.” Helena explained.

“Same sex marriages are not illegal, mind you.” Cassie added. “And they happen sometimes, with less important nobles. But it is looked down upon. Like you are admitting that your family name is worthless. It’s really stupid.”

“Nobles are weird.” I concluded. Then I checked on the meat. It looked like our boar was done. We had saved our beer ration until the food was ready. I distributed the grilled boar and put more meat on the grill.

We clinked our mugs. “To a successful hunt!”

The meat was juicy and tender. I didn't even mind the lack of condiments. We all devoured our portions before the next batch was ready.

“When we are back we need to have a proper barbecue.” Helena said. “With side dishes, various meats and a whole barrel of ale!”

“Can you barbecue inside the academy? Like in the park?” I asked.

“No idea.” Helena admitted.

“Maybe we can go outside on a Solday soon. Your shield was pretty good. You have Nyx. It should not be that easy anymore to assassinate you.” Cassie suggested.

“I don’t know. A proper mage could easily take us out. Remember when Nyx and Peter sparred?”

“Peter is a senior mage with a lot of combat experience. And an assassin would not want to be spotted. If we stayed in populated areas? Maybe.” Skadi mused.

“I will ask the headmaster when we are back. Besides, maybe we can just use a grill inside the academy. There should be no reason to forbid that.” At least no reason I could think of.

“How is the meat?” Helena asked, licking her lips.

I poked it with a dagger. “Looks like it's done.”

We all had seconds, then thirds. When we finished, we were all full and happy. Sadly, the beer ran out quickly and we had to drink water. But it was a rather enjoyable evening. We spent some more time around the fire, then we got ready for bed. Tonight we did not have a guard shift.

I crawled into my tent. Nyx stretched, then curled up on top of me. I fell asleep quickly.