Snow has yet to fall but winter is upon us, pushing out the last vestiges of autumn. Even the days are cold, not just the nights. The sky is perpetually covered in thick, gray clouds and brisk winds creep beneath coats to chill the bones. More than enough to keep people in their homes, huddled around warm fires. Least, if it were the capital full of those with sensitive constitutions.

Quest is in full swing despite the foul weather. A little chill isn’t enough to stop the hunters, men and women possessing strong bodies and stronger wills. More importantly, in the magical and manabeast capital of the kingdom, there are plenty of furs and artifacts to keep them warm.

A long resident of the city or an astute observer might notice the hunters are busier than usual. Normally, their work slows down in winter, as there are many monsters that sleep through the cold months. This year, those idle bodies are being put to a new purpose. Dozens if not hundreds of souls prepare to ride to Fort Victory, ready to join the next campaign into the Bleak Peaks.

Unexpected events have led me to be amongst their number. Had someone asked me if I would ever risk my life in the north a year ago, I would have kindly asked them if they needed directions to a healer to see to their obvious head trauma. Now, not only am I not scared to enter the land of everlasting winter that has claimed the lives of thousands of elite fighters, I’m quite optimistic about the result.

But there is much to do before I set off. I need another teacher for the rest of my affinities. Then there is also my promise to myself to make the kingdom regret underestimating summoners, particularly the Tome family. There is also the matter of the house and the servants. I have to make sure they are taken care of in our absence.

Two weeks. Barely enough time to get it all done. Doubt I’ll get a full night’s rest until it’s time to depart.

The rush is not entirely my fault. I would have preferred starting my preparations earlier but there were delays with the materials I ordered from the Guiness Company. They may be the best but they are only human. Things happen. My schedule for the foreseeable future is a mess but I can only thank the saints my things arrived at all.

Maxine was good enough to offer a discount on the entire order, not a small amount of crowns as some of the things I require are quite rare. In the letter I received yesterday, she also promised to have everything ready for transport first thing.

Well, I truly hope she meant first thing as I set off before the sun had risen. Its rays are weak as the carriage stops before the Guiness Company, not another soul on the road. It’s even too early for the birds, their songs conspicuously absent.

Not for the knights of the Guiness Company though. They stand straight and alert, their golden armor without a mar or a speck of dirt. I can feel their gazes on me as I head for the front door, accompanied by a yawning Kierra.

The teller isn’t nearly as alert. I can’t make out his face with his head slumped and the bill of his cap obscuring his features. His chin is held in his hand and a book is spread out beneath him. Must be a bore if it failed in its purpose of keeping him awake.

I slap the counter, grinning as he jumps with a muffled curse. To his credit, he recovers quickly. “Pardon, lady. How can—” He stops, gaze moving to Kierra. “Ah! You wouldn’t happen to be Lady Tome and Miss Kierra?”

“You know us, good. Then there will be no problem with us collecting my order. Quickly as possible.”

“Uh…I’m sorry. This is a bit unusual. The workers haven’t arrived yet. There is no one to load the wagons.” He clears his throat. “Some of the boxes are heavy and I wouldn’t want to risk—”

“It’s fine. I can handle the boxes myself. As long as we can borrow a wagon. It’d be a pain to find someone willing to lend us one on short notice.”

“No, borrowing it is fine so long as it’s brought back.”

“No problem. Show us to the place.”

“Right this way.” He guides us to a discrete doorway that leads to a narrow hall. There are five doors. I’m guessing the one at the end is another exit. One on the left is a water closet, from the smell.

The teller opens the second door on the right. His eyes glow as a small flame appears at the tip of his finger, which he promptly uses to light a lantern by the door, then another on the opposite side. The light illuminates a small room stacked with boxes and bags.

“Your order is there.” The young man points to a pile of boxes stacked in a square of green paint. An interesting way to organize their storerooms. “There are wagons out back. Feel free to use them as you please.”

“You sound as if you are in a hurry,” Kierra probes.

“Ah, yes. I know the manager was wanting to speak with the ladies. I will inform her of your arrival.”

“She’s here?” I ask with no small amount of surprise.

“Yes. She’s been putting in extra hours to familiarize herself with the store.” I frown. Shouldn’t Maxine be more than familiar with the store after several months? “If you will excuse me.”

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He bows before ducking out of the room.

Once he closes the door, I close my eyes and focus only on what I can hear. I’d go mad if I constantly paid attention to everything my senses pick up. Part of the adjustments to my body allows me to ignore most of what is around me but a simple application of focus lets me use them to their full extent.

I easily track his progress as he moves to the front of the store and climbs the stairs behind his counter to the second floor that holds the meeting rooms used to discuss business or host important clients. There he knocks on a door. Two voices answer, only one familiar.

“Seems the store is under new management.” What Maxine feared has come to pass. Her father has dispatched one of her siblings to Quest. I open my eyes and offer my wife a rueful smile. “What do you think? Trouble?”

Kierra chuckles. “Do you have time for trouble?”

“Not at all. Better get to work so we can make a hasty escape. I’ll pull around the wagon if you can start checking on the boxes.”

Kierra waves me off and I hurry down the hall. As expected, the last door is an exit. Nearby are two wagons and a single large stone. I quickly prop the door open with the stone and pull one of the wagons closer, noticing there are strings inside. Curious.

When I return to the storeroom, Kierra is closing the lid of one of the wooden boxes. I snicker as she hammers the nails back in with a fist. “Good?”

“Mm. Of the ones I’ve checked, the materials appear to be in good condition and properly stored. Though the boxes all have rings on their sides for some reason.”

Rings. “Ah. The wagons have strings attached to their sides.”

“Then they are for securing. Clever.”

“It was a style developed by our sailors for securing cargo on the turbulent seas. The roads of the kingdom aren’t quite as treacherous but it is always better to be safe than sorry. There is no loss quite like the loss of broken wares due to negligence.”

I turn as two people enter the storeroom. One is Maxine, wearing a dark blue dress and a strained smile. She waves to us but keeps her silence, something I’ve never known her to do. She has always been confident but something has her cowled.

Likely the woman beside her. It’s obvious they are related with a glance. Same honey skin. Same dark hair. Same smokey gray eyes. The similarities end with their coloring, besides which the woman is her opposite.

Maxine Guiness is a pretty girl to anyone of good taste but…that’s it. She’s just pretty. It’s of a level that can be achieved by most women with access to the right clothes and beauty products. Her looks are enhanced by the grace of a noblewoman but there are other kinds of charms. No man would reject her advances but they would hardly fight for her attention. Unlike the seductress beside her.

Finely sculpted features, amorous eyes, and a coy smile. Those alone would be dangerous but they are accompanied by a sinful body she uses to full effect. The low-cut chest of her dress, her swaying hips as she struts across the room. Not overtly inappropriate but everything about her screams of her indecent intentions. Or maybe my intuition is compromised by my libido.

“Allow me introduce myself.” She drops into a perfect curtesy. “Marcella Phillonia Guiness, daughter of Marquis Guiness, Maxine’s elder sister, and the new manager of this store.”

“Quite a mouthful. Don’t meet many people with third names.”

“My mother, she is a willful woman. My father likes his children named after him in some way but she was determined to keep the name she chose. You know merchants. Why choose when you can have both? So it came to be.”

Very merchant like indeed. “No need to introduce ourselves, I think.”

“But of course. Your reputation proceeds you.”

“All good things, I hope.”

“I suppose that depends on the listener.” She takes a step forward, inclining her head and lowering her voice as if she is sharing a secret. “I heard of a woman of impressive daring, turning this rigid kingdom upside down. It’s rare to find someone who defies tradition so readily, let alone outright scoffs at it.”

“Yes, well, not much daring. I don’t have much of a choice. Nothing about me is traditional.”

“Quite.” Two more steps forward. Then she reaches out and grasps a strand of my hair, moving it between her fingers. “You have gone out of your way to declare so. A dangerous way to live. I know, I speak from experience.”

“Oh?”

She retracts her hand and steps back. “Mm. My father and many merchants like him believe business should be cold and practical. There is no place for emotion in their negotiations.”

“Sounds logical.”

“Oh, yes. Very logical but are we creatures of logic only? I am certainly not a cold woman.” Her smile becomes a smirk, her eyes beckoning. “I can’t help putting passion into everything I do. Numbers are the core of good business but one does not need to be as inflexible as coin.

“I believe in soft negotiation, Lady Tome. Discussing properties over a drink, lending to one’s neighbors, and signing contracts over dinner. When I close a deal, it makes me happy. It makes me want to celebrate and who better to celebrate with than my business partners who have brought me this joy?

“It builds a relationship, you see. My friends come to see me just to share a simple meal. When they hear a bit of gossip, they may write me a letter. Should they come across an opportunity and they wonder who to share it with, they naturally come to me over a cold, aggressive merchant whose only interest is robbing their coin purse.”

I have met many brazen women, my wife the most of all, but I am never prepared for forward noblewomen. It is particularly unexpected because I know the environment they grow up in. Those that can defy a lifetime of being told to act a certain way are few.

Not even Miss Talia breaks that mold. She propositioned me, much like Marcella is doing now, but was far more subtle. Drawing me in with insinuations and letting me reach a conclusion. Even that was out of character, an effort made to seize a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

If Marcella is to be believed, I am hardly an exception to be the target of her advances.

“Have I shocked you?” she asks, looking not at all bothered by the suggestion. “I hope not. I was so excited to meet you, believing I had found a kindred spirit.”

“Kindred spirit?”

“A woman of passion.”

I swallow heavily. “Well, I admit I’m shocked but maybe in a good way.”

“Haha, you certainly live up to the rumors! Do you have a few moments? I understand you’re in a rush but I’d love to have a conversation. I’ve recently discovered a wonderful bakery, the last thing I expected to find in this city of brutes. Please, say you’ll join me.”

I’m torn. I am in a hurry to get to work and had no intentions of tarrying at the store. However, the plan of quickly grabbing my things and hurrying back to the Hall did not cover meeting such an interesting character. And entertaining. I have a feeling I’d enjoy that conversation, her more carnal intentions aside. Unfortunately, I’m not quite sure how Alana would feel about it with our fledgling relationship and I’d never risk her feelings.

Before I can make up my mind, I feel a light touch on the back of my neck. At a volume only someone with our enhanced hearing could hear, my wife whispers to me, “No.”