The party sat on the plush sofas, Jake, Sophie, Holi, and Shadow on one, and Andy on the other, Esmeralda beside him as she desperately tried to talk to the Defender.
“Ser Strongarm, please,” she begged, “I do not know what I have done to anger you, but you must tell me!”
“You have done nothing to him, Lady Dusk,” Duke Dawnmaker said firmly as he approached the six of them, “He is simply abiding by the conditions set in the Challenge. To do anything else would see him punished by the gods themselves.”
“But that’s ridiculous! Ser Strongarm should have won that Challenge! You all know that!” the young woman cried out, glaring at the duke, “How can he be forced to do something like this against his will?”
“He willing conceded, child,” the duke barked at her, “At least show him the respect he deserves for such an act, be that it was honourable or not!”
“I…” Esmeralda sniffed, before nodding, turning away from Andy as she stifled her tears.
“Good,” the duke sighed, looking sadly at the crying Esmeralda before continuing, “Now, I would very much like to know why the young Whittenger so readily Challenged you to a Champions’ Duel, Ser Strongarm.”
“I…I’m not entirely sure,” Andy muttered, before shaking his head and looking at the duke, “I think it was because he thought Esme…I mean, Lady Dusk was in love with me? He apparently took offense to that and…well, you saw what happened.”
“I did,” the duke nodded, “A Challenge on the night of my own daughter’s engagement announcement, quite the discourteous action, at least on the part of the young Whittenger.”
“Sir?” Andy blinked, still staring at the duke in confusion.
“Know this, I do not blame you for these events, Ser Strongarm,” the duke continued, “Your actions tonight have shown that you are honourable and just, something that Antoine Whittenger apparently is not. As such, I would ask you to tell me all you know about the events preceding the Challenge.”
“The cloaked figure,” Jake suddenly said, “Whittenger was talking to them in a room not long before the fight. They told him that Andy, that is, Goldrun, was getting close to Lady Dusk. That seemed to infuriate him.”
“I see,” the duke sighed, “Well, his infatuation with Esme is somewhat well known, but that cannot be all, can it?”
“No,” Jake shook his head, “I also heard them listen to a message from the bandit that attacked us and Lady Dusk’s carriage on the journey here, though I don’t know how, as I could not see into the room. I believe he may have hired the man to kidnap Lady Dusk for some reason.”
“That is quite the accusation, Lord Grey,” the duke hummed, “Do you have any evidence to back your claim?”
“Apart from my word? No,” Jake muttered, looking away in annoyance, “But I know what I heard.”
“Uhm…quick question,” Shadow said, freezing as everyone turned to look at him, “Uhm…would this be evidence?”
The others all stared as Shadow produced a small crystal orb, about the size of a golf ball, from his inventory, holding it out to the duke.
“This is a Message Orb,” the man grunted, taking it from the Rogue and rolling it in his hand, “How did you come across this?”
“Oh! Well, when Jakey was fighting against that cloaked person, I snuck around and used my [Pickpocket] Skill on them,” Shadow explained quickly, blushing when the rest of the party snickered or rolled their eyes at him, “I actually levelled it up when I succeeded, and I got that orb thing.”
“You are a Thief?” the duke scowled, Shadow shaking his head vigorously, “Well, never mind that for now, it would appear that there is indeed a message recorded in this orb. Let us hope that it is the same one you report on hearing, Lord Grey.”
The room fell silent as the duke activated the orb, making it glow slightly as the familiar voice hummed from it. The message ended quickly, but the words made the duke’s scowl only deepen.
“This is the message you heard?” he asked Jake, who nodded, “And this voice? You are sure it belongs to the leader of the bandits who attacked you and Esme?”
“Yes sir,” Jake nodded again, “I believe the man was called ‘Flame Axe’ Oswald.”
“Hmm,” the duke growled slightly, shaking his head as he pocketed the orb, “Most distressing. Very well, we shall handle this from here, just know that the young Whittenger will be brought to justice for his crimes should he be found guilty.”
“What?” Esmeralda gasped, “B-but what of Ser Strongarm? Surely there is something that can be done to free him of the influence of the Challenge?”
“Unfortunately, no, Esme,” the duke sighed, “To end the conditions, both parties involved must be present, and the winning party must relinquish their victory willingly.”
“And I doubt Antoine will do something like that,” Andy sighed, shaking his head, “So I’m stuck not being able to talk to Esme at all?”
“Until your final death,” the duke nodded, “A pity, for she seems to truly enjoy your company.”
“If I could, I would tell her I’m sorry for all this, but I just couldn’t let that man die for such a stupid reason,” Andy replied, Esmeralda sniffing as she listened, “But what about that Franz guy? Will he be okay?”
“The actions of you and your comrades saved his life,” the duke nodded, “And he shall be taken into custody until such a time as the Whittenger family sends someone to retrieve him. As such, I shall pen a letter to the Earl myself, describing his son’s actions here tonight. I can do little else at this moment, but I hope that shall be satisfactory for the time being.”
“Of course,” Jake nodded, “Thank you, Duke Dawnmaker.”
“Now, as for the rest of the party,” the duke said, “Unfortunately, I must ask you all to leave, except you Esme. You were originally brought as guests of the Dusk family, but now that Ser Strongarm has been forced to cease contact with Esme, you are no longer under the family’s protection.”
“That’s fine,” Andy sighed, “We’ll go without trouble. I just wish I could have thanked Esme for everything she’d done for us and say sorry about all this.”
“I am sure she will understand, Ser Strongarm,” the duke nodded, a thoughtful look on his face, “You are a Defender, are you not? Perhaps you should visit the Knight’s Barracks upon the morn. They may have a place for one as honourable as you.”
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“They…thank you for the advice, your dukeship,” Andy nodded excitedly, “I shall do just that.”
The duke just chuckled as he nodded to the party, who all rose and headed out the door, leaving the man and Esmeralda behind.
“Uncle, why couldn’t you do more?” the young woman sniffed, looking at him as fresh tears formed in her eyes.
“I did all I could, Esme,” the duke sighed, “But I shall ensure that the young man who has captured your heart will not suffer for the acts of us nobles. That would not be fair or just in the slightest.”
“I…” Esmeralda sniffed again before giving the man a weak smile, “Thank you, uncle. I shall go clean up, then return to the party. Liena has yet to make her announcement, after all.”
“Do that, child,” the duke smiled at her, “It would seem that I have some work that must be done.”
------
“You can let me down, Nyx,” Antoine Whittenger growled as the figure carried him across the rooftops, moving as though he weighed nothing, “This is…embarrassing, to say the least.”
“No can do, young master,” the cloaked figure chuckled, “You’ve made quite the scene tonight, so anyone seeing you walking the streets would be a liability.”
“Still,” the noble whined, “It’s unfair! How could Esme fall for such a…a thing as a Traveller?”
“I do not know, nor do I particularly care, young master,” Nyx hummed as they neared the eastern gates, dropping down to street level and placing the young man on the ground, “Let’s just hurry out of here. There is a carriage waiting us at the gate.”
“There is?” Antoine huffed, looking into the shadows of the large hood that hid the figure’s face, “Did you really think I would cause such a scene tonight as to warrant a sudden get away?”
“Not as big as this, no,” the figure laughed, “It was just a precaution. One that worked out quite well, I might add. Now, stop complaining and move.”
“Fine,” Antoine growled, looking back up the road towards the Noble’s District, “But this is far from over, Nyx. Far from over.”
“I’ll take you word for that, young master,” the figure hummed, “Now, let’s go.”
------
“So, what now?”
Shadow spoke as the party was escorted off the grounds of the large manor house, left at the gates as the guards who had accompanied them bid them farewell.
“First, I need to go fetch Eta,” Jake said, “I left him at the Dusk Residence, so that’s my first concern.”
“You do that, Jakey,” Andy sighed, looking sadly back at the large building, “The rest of us will go look for an inn or tavern to stay at for the night.”
“I know of a nice one in the Wizard’s District,” Sophie said, “The other students at the College talked a lot about it. It’s supposed to be decently priced and comfortable.”
“Sure, sounds good,” Andy muttered, already walking away as the party followed, “We’ll send you the location once you’ve gotten Eta, Jakey.”
“Alright,” the man nodded, looking back at his friends as they hurried after the obviously depressed Andy, Jake quickly grabbing Holi by the arm, “Make sure he gets there safe. And maybe change out of your outfits to not attract too much attention.”
“We’ll do that,” the Priestess nodded, smiling kindly at Jake.
Watching the group hurry off, Holi whispering to them as they all paused and reequipped their adventuring gear, Jake sighed. He quickly swapped his own clothes for his armour and cloak, walking down the street in the direction of the manor house they’d been staying at for the last few days. Distracted, he started to run, darting between the shadows as though he were back in the Dark Woods, avoiding the patrolling guards like they were the powerful monsters of the forest. Even doing that, it took him barely an hour to reach the manor house in question, walking up to the door and knocking.
“Yes?” the servant who answered said, looking at him in surprise, “Ah, Lord Grey, what brings you back so soon?”
“I’m just here to pick up my pet,” he said, walking in as the servant nodded, letting him pass.
Jake quickly went back to his room, opening the door to find Eta sprawled out on the bed, his stomach slightly distended as a large silver platter lay on the floor. Chuckling, Jake called to him, the Shadow Wolf immediately waking up and hopping lazily off the bed.
“Hey Eta,” he said as he scratched the large wolf behind the ears, “Sorry, but we’re going to have to leave here for a while.”
Eta whined softly, looking back at the platter in sorrow, before turning back to Jake and nodding.
“Right,” Jake smiled, “Let’s go.”
The pair left the manor house by the front door, pausing as Jake sent a quick message to Holi, who replied with the location of the tavern they were staying in. Nodding his head, he started heading towards the Wizard’s District, passing by the numerous large manor houses of the Noble’s District until he came to the more crowded buildings of the Market District, his goal on the other side. Looking up, a strange idea came to his mind, Jake looking around to make sure there were no guards around, before grinning at Eta.
“Hey boy,” he said softly, “How about a race?”
------
“Are you still awake, lady Hart?”
Amelia groaned audibly at the nasally voice, looking up form her book as the apprentice Merchant sauntered up to the chair she was sitting in. They were in a roadside inn for the night, and it seemed that the brat she was supposed to be guarding was going to try the same thing he had for the last three nights.
“Aren’t you uncomfortable down here?” the boy asked, smiling at her, “Perhaps you would prefer to sleep in a room tonight?”
“No,” Amelia replied flatly, grinding her teeth in annoyance.
“Are you certain? The beds at this inn are particularly comfortable,” the boy continued, “I can attest to that. In fact, I believe that mine is particularly so.”
“That is nice,” Amelia growled, “Perhaps you should return to it. Alone.”
That was usually where the conversation ended, the irritating youth returning to his room with a scowl, but tonight he seemed to be more determined than ever.
“Come now, lady Hart,” he smiled again, “No need to be so cold. Perhaps we could do something to warm you up? Maybe upstairs? In my ro-?”
Amelia had had enough.
“I will gut you like the disgusting little pig you are if you don’t shut up right now,” Amelia snarled as she stood from her chair, spinning to glare at the now terrified boy in disgust, “You think you’re worthy of sleeping with me? That I’m just a Traveller willing to open my legs for anyone with enough coin? No. In fact, in my world, someone as pathetic as you would be killed before you could so much as look at me. So, if you so desperately want me to come with you to your room, just know that you will never leave it again.”
“I…what?” the boy stammered, “But I…but my father hired you! You were told to do as I say!”
“I was told to make sure you didn’t die like the incompetent fool you are,” Amelia growled back, her voice going sickly sweet, “Not play prostitute for you. Now, unless you want to go back to bed without certain parts still attached, leave me alone.”
“I…you…you bitch! I shall be informing my father of this! You will never get a job from our family again!”
“That would be far too soon,” Amelia spat as she shoved past the boy, sending him stumbling as she headed out the door of the inn, “In fact, tell him the next time I lay eyes on him, you’re both as dead as you would have been tonight.”
Silence hung in the air as she slammed the door behind her, a puddle forming on the ground beneath the boy as he stared after her.
------
The party sat quietly at the table in the inn, the last of the late-night crowd making their way out to their homes or dormitories as the bartender cut them off.
“You sure you’re okay, mate?” Shadow asked Andy as the man sighed into his drink.
“Yeah, just…annoyed more than upset,” Andy muttered, “I mean, we had a great thing going for a while there, and I ended up ruining it. We didn’t even get the rewards for the Quest yet.”
“It’s fine,” Sophie hummed, chuckling slightly, “We got to spend a few days living in luxury, some fancy new clothes, and to make a scene in front of a bunch of stuck-up nobles. I’d say that’s reward enough.”
“I agree,” Holi nodded, “Don’t blame yourself for something out of your control, Goldy.”
“I guess,” the man sighed again, shaking his head, “Dammit, look at me! Moping over a single failed Quest? That’s bullshit. Nah, tomorrow we’ll all go out hunting like regular adventurers, and it’ll be fine!”
“Uhm…actually,” Sophie said, making the table look at her, “I have to attend lessons at the College. I need to gain a total of fifty credits to get my Wizard Class, and I can only take the one credit lessons right now, and only those for the general subjects and fire element, so it’s going to take at least a few weeks.”
“Ah,” Andy said.
“Yeah,” Shadow added, “And I want to go looking for the person Bertram told me about, to get my next Class as well. Sorry.”
“Okay,” Andy nodded, looking at the Priestess, “And you, Holi?”
“I’m free,” she said, “But shouldn’t you take the duke’s advice from earlier and go see the Knights at their barracks tomorrow? I’m sure something good will come of that.”
“Oh, right,” Andy blinked, a slight smile forming on his lips, “Yeah, I should do that, shouldn’t I?”
The door swung open as a dark cloaked figure entered, the party looking up at him as he strode over to their table, a wide grin on his face and a large wolf at his heels.
“Hey, Jakey, what’s got you in such a good mood?” Andy laughed at the silly grin on his friend’s face.
“I just got two of my Ascended Skills up to level ten,” Jake said as he sat at the table, “And I think I know how to Ascend at least one of them a second time.”