Chapter 543: Katag’s Dinner Party Part 1
The orcs standing watch at the Katag manor’s back door watched Stryg approach from the gardens.
“Lord Aspirant…?” asked one of two guards.
Stryg grinned uneasily, “So I’ve been called. Look, I know we don’t know each other, but I was hoping you could let me through?”
The orcs looked at one another. “But, m’lord. You’re the guest of honor.”
They stepped aside with a slight and opened the door.
“Oh, well, um. Thanks?” Stryg hopped up the stairs. “Oh, and one last thing.”
“Yes, m’lord?”
“Could you, um, not tell anyone I was here?”
“Of course, m’lord.”
“Thanks.” Stryg nodded in gratitude and walked inside.
The guard closed the door and resumed his post.
His comrade glanced at him with a frown, “What do you think all that was about? Couldn’t he have just gone through the front entrance?”
“I’ve learned not to ask questions about what lords and ladies get up to. Believe me, none of it would make sense to us.”
He shrugged. “Nobles, I guess.”
“Nobles.”
~~~
Stryg walked down the hall and found himself in the largest set of kitchens he had ever seen. Dozens of servants bustled around, chopping vegetables, stirring boiling pots, seasoning fish, turning the spit of sizzling meat over the fire. The whole room seemed chaotic and yet no one bumped into one another. They moved with an efficiency Stryg had only seen in Sylvan hunting parties. He smiled in admiration at the sight of the cooks.
One heavyset woman, an orc with short brown hair and dark red skin, shouted orders at the rest of them without missing a beat. She turned, caught sight of Stryg, and frowned.
“Oi! What are you doing in my kitchen!? Wait, you’re…?” She noticed the color of his eyes and his down-slanted pointed ears. This wasn’t a drunk drow noble who had wandered in, this was the one everyone had been gossiping about. “Oh sweet Stjerne, help me!” she gasped.
Stryg glanced at her, the name of his father had caught his attention. “Are you the one in charge?”
The head cook paled and began to shake uncontrollably, “F-F-Forgive me, m’lord, I—”
He walked up to her and grabbed her by the shoulders. “This is incredible! You’re incredible! How do you manage to lead them all at once?”
“Huh?”
“And the scents! It all smells so delicious! You could feed an army with all this food!” Stryg spun around and hovered over a steaming dish of meat drizzled with an orange glaze and decorated with an array of cooked vegetables. “What is this?”
“I—” She ran her hands across her apron and swallowed nervously, “That’s a rare type of eel caught deep in the Ebon Sea on the western coast.”
“Did you make it?” he asked excitedly.
“I had a hand in it. I mostly made sure the glaze was on point. I have too many dishes to oversee, I cannot spend my time cooking only one.”
“You must be a master of your path then,” he nodded in understanding. “What masters of the culinary path did you train under? Are they here?”
“I learned from my mum when I was a girl. Everyone calls her Nana, she’s not here tonight. She usually only works in the mornings.”
“Nana…? You mean the old woman who makes those delicious pies?”
“You know her?”
“We met in Undergrowth at the Katag’s villa. She’s a true master of the culinary path. I see now why you lead the kitchen and its cooks.” He took a deep breath and sighed in satisfaction, “This is incredible.”
She straightened her back and stood a little taller. “T-Thank you, m’lord.”
A couple of other cooks had noticed Stryg now and had stopped what they were doing and openly stared while whispering amongst each other fervently.
Stryg noticed and grimaced slightly, “Sorry, I didn’t mean to stop your working patterns.”
“Not at all! I’m glad you enjoy our food. Please, have some, i-if you’d like, that is.”
“I would very much like that.”
“Great! Sorry, I meant I’d be honored. M’lord.” She turned to a pair of cooks and snapped her fingers, “Bring the Lord Aspirant our finest glass of wine and a sampling of tonight’s finest dishes.”
The cooks nodded and scurried off.
“Thank you,” said Stryg.
“It is my pleasure, m’lord.”
“I was wondering if you could help me with one other thing?”
“Certainly.”
“Could you tell me where the party is?”
~~~
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The main hall was filled with the music and song of minstrels playing at the coroner of the hall. Servants brought platters of appetizers and drinks to nobles as they meandered across the polished marble floor, greeting one another.
Lady Evelyn Katag stood with one circle of nobility as they spoke about the recent siege. She paid little mind to their words and instead searched the crowd for Elise, but the Veres vampire was elusive. One moment she was laughing and chatting with notoriously stoic nobles and then another moment she was speaking in hushed tones to terrible gossip mongers.
What are you doing, Elise? thought Evelyn with a frown. When it came to the deadly political webs of nobles Elise was one of its deadliest spiders.
“What do you think, Lady Katag?”
“Hm?” Evelyn glanced back at Lady Winderlyn, an old drow who had been speaking for the last five minutes.
“About the dragons? They suddenly left after the siege. Do you think they’ll be back? What about the savages? I heard Marek escaped with the rest of his army. Are they planning another attack?”
The others’ expressions grew more worried as the old woman spoke.
Evelyn smiled, “I can assure you, Lord Marek did not escape.”
“Then where is he?” asked Winderlyn anxiously.
“Yes, Lady Katag.” A burly human, only half a head shorter than Krall, walked into the small circle of nobles. A black bear covered his face, though it did little to hide the small scars etched across his skin. “Where is the monster who slaughtered my friend’s entire family?”
Evelyn inclined her head, “Lord Blackmere.”
Various nobles had been invited to tonight’s party. Many belonged to vassal Houses of House Katag and House Veres. Others were potential prospects, Minor and Great Houses that had lost much in the war and were searching to strengthen their ties. Tonight would be the birth of a new era for Hollow Shade and there was no House Evelyn wanted on their side more than House Blackmere.
They were a human Great House hailing from Frost Rim. The Blackmeres were known as one of the largest iron providers in the entire realm thanks to their mines in the Rupture Mountains. House Helene had exclusive trading rights with the Blackmeres for decades, but with the obliteration of all the Helenes save a child, the Blackmeres would need a new intermediary to sell their goods to within Hollow Shade.
Evelyn raised her glass, “I’m glad you made it, my lord.”
Blackmere’s grim expression did not budge. “I only came here tonight because I heard that the council has Marek in custody, is that true?”
Evelyn sipped her glass calmly. “And if it is?”
“Why haven’t you killed that fucking bastard yet? He murdered thousands.”
“Which is why we must think carefully on how to proceed. Or must I remind you that his army still lives?”
“There is only one way to proceed. Kill that son of a bitch.”
She swirled her glass. “Possibly. Though if you think growling at me will get you what you want then you are sorely mistaken.”
Blackmere crossed his arms. “If you want something from my House then you’ll be disappointed. Lady Ashe has already offered me a very lucrative mercantile contract.”
Evelyn’s calm exterior cracked at the mention of Calantha Ashe, but she quickly smothered it away. “I’m certain Lady Ashe’s offer is sweet, but my House can offer you more than simply wealth.”
“And what might that be?” he asked gruffly.
“Power.”
“You speak of the Ebon Aspirant,” interjected Lady Winderlyn excitedly.
“The so-called Lord Veres?” said Blackmere.
“Oh my, word gets around quickly, I see,” said Evelyn lightly.
“You’d have to be a fool to not have already heard the rumors. And you’d have to be even a bigger fool to think them true.”
“You doubt Lord Stryg’s validity, Lord Blackmere?” asked Evelyn.
He scoffed. “The way they speak about him makes it sound as if he is more than a man, but Parathyan born anew. A god among men, slaying dragons and monsters alike. Is that the validity you speak of?”
“I admit stories become embellished the more they are shared, but there is more to Lord Veres than meets the eye.”
“That seems like a vague way of talking him up without making yourself seem a fool.”
She was about to retort when she spotted a cloak of white flowers behind Blackmere in the distance. Stryg stood at the hall’s doorway cluelessly, an empty glass of wine in hand. He turned and they made eye contact. With a subtle nod, she bid him over.
Evelyn returned her gaze to Blackmere and smirked, “You speak so casually of fools so allow me to share a bit of wisdom. The Ebon Aspirant is power. House Veres and House Katag are well suited to fund and protect your vested interests.”
Blackmere shook his head. “If he is so well suited, then where is this mysterious Aspirant? So many stories about one single man and yet no one has ever seen him. Do you not find that strange, Lady Winderlyn? Have you seen him? Is he not the guest of honor?”
“I cannot say that I have seen the Ebon Aspirant,” admitted Winderlyn.
“Odd, no?” Blackmere raised his eyebrow. “Anything else to add about this ‘power’, Lady Evelyn? Perhaps another vague embellishment?”
Evelyn sipped her drink slowly before answering. “Hm, I’m not sure. What say you, Lord Veres?”
Blackmere frowned, then turned around and jumped as he came face to face with Stryg. “Y-You’re him!” he muttered in shock.
The other nobles stepped back as if by an invisible force and stared wide-eyed at the silent visitor.
Stryg didn’t react to their surprise, he had grown used to it by now, and glanced at Evelyn with his usual unruffled demeanor. “The food was delicious, but the wine…”
“Unsatisfying?” she guessed with a smile.
“I’d prefer something— more fresh.”
“I understand completely, food can be found everywhere but we aren’t here simply for food, but— wine.” Evelyn looked at Blackmere, “Unfortunately not every bottle ages well with change.”
Stryg nodded absentmindedly, “Yes, some are lacking. Not strong enough.”
Blackmere scowled. “I assure you, my House possesses the greatest iron mines in the entire Realm.”
Stryg furrowed his brow, “And?”
“What?” Blackmere blinked and laughed nervously, “I mean isn’t that what matters—”
“Yes, I agree, Lord Veres. And?” said Evelyn. “So what if your House possesses mines? You aren’t the only one with access to iron. There are other Houses eager to offer their wares and they’d be lucky to have allies as powerful as us. I’m certain I can find Lord Veres a new, better wine, if he so desires. One more fresh and open to ideas.”
“Perfect,” said Stryg.
“Something stronger then?” asked Evelyn.
“Always.” Stryg suddenly spotted Tauri talking with her sister on the other side of the hall, “I’ll leave it to you, Lady Katag.”
“Now hold on just one moment—!” Blackmere reached out but Stryg had already disappeared into the crowd.
Evelyn smirked and sipped at her glass. “Lord Blackmere, it seems you are under a misconception. We don’t need you. You need us. So, let us hope your House is— strong enough.”
The confidence in Blackmere’s eyes dissipated as he shifted his feet and swallowed hard.
Stryg walked through the crowd, slipping past chatting guests and rushing servants, his eyes locked in on Tauri. Elena stood next to her but something was off about her expression. She seemed— angry? Sad? Conflicted? He couldn’t tell.
A large hand suddenly fell on his shoulder and Stryg resisted the urge to bite off its fingers when he saw who it belonged to.
Krall Katag smiled wide, “It’s good to see you, my boy.”
“Lord Krall,” he started. “Can we talk?”
“Straight to business, ey? Not to worry, we’ll have plenty of time to talk about our plans later tonight. But for now,” Krall clapped his hands together loudly.
The minstrels noticed their cue and stopped playing and singing. The guests all turned to Krall as he shouted, “May I have your attention! Thank you all for coming this evening. These last few days have been difficult for all of us. I'm grateful you’ve set aside time to come here, but I know you all came for the same reason,” he laughed. “Yes, the rumors are true. So, allow me to introduce to you, my soon-to-be son-in-law, Lord Aspirant Stryg of the Great House of Veres, the Ebon Prince of Hollow Shade!”