7 Lumaki, 891 ED

Oraw, 11:57

Milagre, Empire of Tyrman

“Here you go. It’s small and hasn’t been lived in for some years, so it will take some work. But I’m sure you can get it up to snuff quickly.”

I took the keys that the Royal Clerk’s assistant had handed me, twirling them around my finger by the long loop of leather thread that held them together. They glinted against the light of the sun looming over our heads, almost blinding me with the reflected light. The jangling noise seemed to annoy Gogo, however, so I stopped, holding them tight in my fist.

“Thanks,” I said, shaking hands with the Clerk’s assistant. “It’s just what I’m looking for. I believe nobody else owns the land around us, right?”

“Well, the Crown owns the land,” the Clerk corrected me. “But if you wish to expand, that is easily done. Just visit the Clerk’s office and pay the cost of the land.”

I nodded my understanding, and the man inclined his head, once again thanking me for my purchase, then turned on his heel to return to the palace. That left me, Gogo, and Gaurse, who looked more than a little surprised to be included.

“Why did I have to be here with this?” She asked me, inclining her head back to glance at the top of the building. “I hope you’re not expecting free labor to fix this mess of a building.”

“Well, we’ve done almost half a dozen bounties together by now,” I pointed out. “I figured that made us business partners, to a certain extent.”

“I can see how you’d assume that,” she replied. “And I’m not against going into business with you. You’re a crafty one to be sure. But this building is going to take so much work, it’s not really worth it.”

“We can work together,” I assured her. “I know quite a bit about construction. And look at the amount of land that comes with this building.”

I lifted my arm to point out the four corners of the lot, which had been marked by small wooden posts stabbed into the ground, and with a thin rope stretched around to make the rectangle. All told it was nearly an entire acre. Sure, it had cost me nearly all the money I’d had left, but it was the best deal I could find. “We can use the extra land here to grow things. Once we expand, we can even keep animals, this far out of the city. Gogo knows a lot about that, don’t you?”

Gogo nodded slowly, as if not sure where I was going with my plan. “But I have no experience with herbs. The other members of Baithak took care of that. Anjali, mostly.”

“That’s fine,” I said breezily, holding up the book I’d purchased the day before. “This holds all the magicks that someone might need to tend to the herbs we’ll grow.”

The book, titled Useful Charms for Herbology and Alchemy, was written by Elena Bragg-Inaro. It was a surprise to see the book. I knew that Elena was already adept at cooking, herbology, and alchemy, but I hadn’t expected to find her doing published work at her age. She was truly Samuel's daughter, I thought with a barely suppressed grin.

“Alright then,” Gaurse said, folding her arms and looking put upon. “But don’t think I work for free. I want a share of everything you sell from that garden.”

I managed to avoid rolling my eyes, but only barely. I didn’t bother replying either, because I knew she’d be too stubborn to hear sense at the moment. So instead, I turned to address Gogo again. “I don’t expect you two to do more than you want. But if we’re going to be able to afford this place and keep up with the College fees, we need a way to make a steady income.”

He nodded his reluctant agreement with the fact. “Still, this house is very run down.”

“That’s true,” I admitted. “But as I said, I know my way around construction. Don’t worry, I can take care of it. By the end of the month, this place will be in much better shape.”

The two of them looked dubious, but I didn’t say anything further. I’d already reached out to the nearest lumber mill for fresh supplies. That purchase in particular had drained the rest of my meager savings. I only had a few copper pieces to rub together, and one lonely silver coin. It was about time we found ourselves another bounty if only to enjoy a meal that night.

“I want to go hunting tonight,” Gogo said. Clearly, he was thinking along similar lines to me. “Mandra’s cooking is wonderful, but I want the taste of fresh venison.”

“And what if we can’t catch a deer?” Gaurse asked. “Hunting is hard enough as it is with those damned Druids making up strict rules.”

I blinked at her, surprised that she could live so close to the Dagorra Forest and know so little about how the druids of Grimr operated. They allowed hunters to traverse the forest freely, and even to claim trees, within reason. The only rule they truly enforced often was to obey Grimr’s teachings and respect the laws of nature.

The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.

Again, Gogo seemed to be thinking along similar lines. “Take no more than what you need. Tread the path and be safe. Respect the Land. How hard is that?”

Gaurse, her arms still folded, didn’t offer a reply to his statement. Instead, she cast a quick glance up and down the small side street on which our house was set. She appeared to be considering something for herself. After a moment or two, she nodded slowly, as if in grudging appreciation. “At least it’s quiet over here. I sometimes feel that the city can be a bit too loud for peace of mind.”

The notice board at the edge of the Noble District had a much larger crowd gathered around it today. Something added had drawn quite a bit of attention, I noticed. After taking a moment to share a puzzled look with the other two, I signaled for them to wait, then began shoving myself into the crowd. It took more than a minute to get within sight of the bounty board. Once I could read the printed words clearly, I understood why the crowd had been drawn.

Following information gleaned from prisoners, the Royal Crown has issued an open bounty for the following people:

* Rohan Silver

* Garrick Moran

* Mitch West

* Harold Ciayol

* Natsuo Tanaka

These five individuals are known members of the Thieve’s Guild, and are guilty of the crimes of murder, disturbing the peace, attempted treason, and evading arrest.

The Crown is offering a bounty of two hundred and fifty gold pieces for each member captured.

I extracted myself from the crowd and made my way back to where Gogo and Gaurse were standing. They looked puzzled at the grin on my face, and Gaurse spoke first. “What is it? What are they gathered around that board for?”

“Oh, nothing special,” I said, “Just the best bounty I think I’ve ever seen.”

I shoved a hand into my belt pouch and retrieved the small notebook I kept for notes, quickly jotting down the names as I remembered, then showed them to the others. “We’ll have to check back tomorrow and see if any of them have been captured. In the meantime, we’ll-”

I felt a sudden heat at my waist and stopped talking. Reaching into the pouch, I pulled out the small clear stone that was putting off the heat. It was a spellstone, of course, used for messaging between different people across great distances. Gogo was pulling a stone out as well, also glowing with a bright inner light. The instant I lifted the stone to look at it properly, a voice sounded in my head.

Attention to all Mage’s College first-years!

You are summoned to the campus for your entrance and placement examinations. Please bring your information with you, and be prepared to request a focus upon arrival.

“Looks like it’s finally time,” I said to Gogo. Then, to Gaurse, who had noticed the spell but didn’t know the reason, I said, “We have to go to the College. Can you hang around the house and confirm the materials they’re going to bring?”

She rolled her eyes but seemed willing. “Fine. Go along to the College. I’ll hang around the base while you’re drowning in books.”

With a self-satisfied sort of smirk, she turned on her heel and stalked back down the road toward the depths of the residential district. Gogo and I turned to the left, taking the side street that wrapped around the exterior of the Noble District toward the College. To my surprise, I noticed the wall still bore the hints of damage it had sustained during Attos’ invasion of Milagre. The people of the city may have recovered from that incident, but signs of it still lingered in unexpected places.

-

The grounds of the College were, unsurprisingly, in a hectic state of disarray. Nearly two hundred prospective mages were gathered in front of the administrative building. Curiously, they weren’t facing the building itself, but a patch of grass off to the side. There, six figures in blue robes had formed a line, leaving about four or five feet between each of them.

No sooner had Gogo and I stepped onto the campus than the figures showed some life. They turned their heads toward the entryway of the administrative building. The crowd, watching them anxiously, turned to see what they were looking at. Two new people had stepped out. One of them, clad in his white archmage’s robe, was immediately recognizable. Samuel Bragg, Prime Magus and Archmage of Knowledge.

“Shit,” I said, keeping my voice low so that not even Gogo could hear me. “Of course, he’s got to be here to welcome the new students.”

Then, with a start of surprise, I realized that I also recognized the man he was walking with. It had taken a second because of the new dark blue robe he wore. It was undeniably the robe of a Master of a school of magic, and the sigil stitched onto his robes was that of a skull. Selvik, the owner and leader of the Laughing Lich. His presence seemed to stir up a great deal of interest and nervous muttering within the crowd of new students.

“What is that skull?” One asked to his friend, his voice higher than he meant it to be due to the nerves. “I didn’t know there was a new school of magic.”

“It’s necromancy,” his friend hissed back. By comparison, she kept her voice calm and measured. “Of course, the College is going to accept it now that Bora Bora isn’t preventing its practice.”

“Good morning, young mages,” Samuel Bragg said. His voice had been magically magnified so that it boomed out with almost supernatural force, catching all their attention at once. “As I’m sure you have noticed, we have a new Master in the College. This is Master Selvik, who had graciously agreed to oversee the school of Necromancy, to teach the younger generations his craft.”

As he spoke, I found myself watching Samuel’s face, trying to see how he felt about this event. Selvik was responsible for trying to kill him, and had partially succeeded. Would he welcome this expansion of the College because it meant new information? Or was he only appearing to support Selvik’s appointment in order to keep the peace?

Whatever his thoughts on the matter were, I couldn’t glean them from his face. His expression was a calm mask of polite interest, and he seemed quite welcome to the idea. He was here to do his job, nothing more. There was no point in sharing his inner thoughts with a crowd of fledgling mages, after all. Selvik, after receiving a nervous round of applause as a welcome, took his place at the end of the line of teachers

“As I’m sure you’ve heard,” Samuel continued, “Starting this year at the College, we have changed our admission policy. There are simply too many new students coming in to let one overworked Adept sort you all into schools and prepare your paperwork. So now, you’ll show your strength directly to one of our illustrious masters. We will judge your skill for ourselves, and determine which school of magic you favor, or if you should join this year.”