As always, it was another sleepless night for Marin, but at least he could spend the long quiet hours in his own dwelling. That certainly beat the tavern or inn he had experienced for the past several days. He passed a few of those hours writing new pieces for his organ that he enjoyed playing, and read some books on Kudu, which he happened to have in his own personal library.
Later, he could be found on his balcony, overlooking the nightwatch below him. The cold winter wind blew as he toked on his pipe filled with smokeleaf. It was something he felt no effect from, but the familiarity of doing so when he was truly alive made the whole action worth it.
Finally, as the morning would approach within a couple of hours, Marin laid face-up on his luxurious bed, staring at the framing above him, with his fingers interconnected, resting on his chest.
Laying there, he began to think of the secret earth elemental hidden within his Kingdom somewhere. He had told Loid that it was his plan to find out who that was, and indeed it was something he aimed to do – he just had no idea how to go about the investigation.
Marin guessed that interviewing Phil and Rocko on the events would be a great place to start, but after dwelling on the whole matter, Marin began to realize he did not have time to become a sleuth. He had a Kingdom to run, and with RAM showing up soon, he did not have the time nor the extra energy to spend on cracking this case.
He would have to hire an investigator. Who though? Marin could not think of anyone who would be good enough for the job. Everyone who lived in the castle already had jobs, and hiring an outside private investigator would be folly.
Marin threw his hands up at his inability to properly address this whole situation. Maybe he would leave it to Loid. After all, this earth elemental didn’t seem to be a hostile player. As far as Marin was concerned, he had created an accidental explosion that he had to quickly cover up. That was apparently the worst thing that had happened so far. It wasn’t of dire urgency to uncover this secret person at the moment.
After weighing it all, Marin decided that discovering the secret elemental would be a low priority at this time. Maybe when he wouldn’t be so busy, he would conduct some sort of effort, but until then, he would tell Loid to keep his eyes open for suspicious activity.
Marin looked to his right, and through a window, the sky began to lighten.
It was day time once again, and that signaled the end of being trapped in his quarters.
It was only six in the morning, but that didn’t stop Marin from entering the hallway of the top floor, and walking a few doors down to one of the fancy guest rooms that resided close to him.
He approached that specific door, and gave it a few firm knocks. Marin didn’t expect an immediate opening, but that was okay. He was a patient man, and it was early in the morning after all.
After hearing some rumblings and mumblings from the other side, the door eventually opened, revealing a frazzled doctor who was getting his circular glasses on straight.
“Good Morning, Doctor,” Marin greeted upon seeing Eisen.
“Yeah, yeah. It sure is,” Eisen responded sarcastically, still composing himself after being woken up just minutes ago.
“Are you ready to travel to my old laboratory?” Marin asked.
“As ready as I’ll ever be. Lead the way,” Eisen instructed, while pulling his brittle gray hair back into a familiar ponytail.
Marin never had struggles with the morning hours anymore due to his lack of sleep, but even the doctor had to battle it, continuing to wake up as he walked with Marin to the lower levels.
Yesterday, before Eisen departed for the night after dinner, Marin had told him that he would be waking him up early to grab the notes from his sealed-off lab the next morning. The doctor was excited, and respected the fact that Marin wanted to get him on the research as soon as possible.
On the way down, and to the back of the castle where the forbidden room had been closed off, they held conversation.
“The notes are scattered in a messy fashion. I couldn’t tell you if all the research is even there,” Marin explained.
“Anything will help. If I could recover a good chunk of your research, I should be able to piece the rest of it together.”
“I hope so.”
Eisen was looking forward to the work, and was ready to apply all the knowledge he had into figuring out just how Marin got himself into the state he was in. His stained white lab coat rippled behind him as they both paced to their destination.
After entering a wing of the castle that was closed off to most, they took several turns to get to the back of the castle where Marin’s old workstations were. Half way down the hallway, Marin halted, causing Eisen to abruptly stop as well.
“What is it?” The doctor asked.
“This is where it was,” Marin responded, realizing that Eisen hadn’t even noticed the old entrance of the lab that had been bricked away seamlessly into the wall.
Eisen squinted at the former doorway, but then noticed that the bricks were of slightly different texture than the rest of the hallway.
“Wow,” the doctor exclaimed. “You commissioned some really good work to close this off, and make it unnoticeable. I wasn’t even wise of it.”
“Well, had I known that I would’ve met someone who would be taking a crack at this project, I wouldn’t have this sealed away. It’s a shame I have to undo such handiwork, but it can’t be helped,” Marin said.
He then pushed his palm up against the sealed archway, and frost escaped from his hand, slowly coating the stone bricks in the immediate area. After that had been completed, he gently pushed on the wall, and the bricks – which had become brittle from the frost infusion – fell forward into the hidden room behind them.
“You’re not that great in combat, Marin. But your technical use of ice is very, very good,” Eisen commented after watching the mastered use of ice infusion, something that only expert level elementals could perform.
“It’s because I studied at Arkana. They teach you to use your element for utility, not as a weapon,” Marin responded as he walked into the dark room. “But, I’m sure with you being a blood elemental and all, you would know quite a bit about technical expertise.”
Marin’s old research facility was just as he had left it. The very glass from the beaker he drank still littered the ground. He began explaining the whole experience to Eisen – every thing he could remember. The doctor began collecting every piece of paper he could get his hands on. He went through all the drawers, grasping everything he could find.
After Marin gave his rough recollection of how everything went down, Eisen had a fairly thick stack of aged paperwork in his grasp.
“Well Marin, look at it this way. Almost no one gets it all right the first time. The fact you used yourself as a guinea pig to see if it would work though, that’s crazy. But hopefully I can see where you went wrong, and right that small detail.” Eisen began shoving the papers inside his lab coat.
“It goes without saying I’m sure, but no other eyes are to ever see that paperwork,” Marin said in quite the serious tone.
“Of course, of course,” Eisen confirmed. “I will get on this right away, just as soon as the servants move all my belongings into the basement. I need to get my facilities set up first.”
“I will fund everything you request, in return for taking care of my citizens,” Marin also reminded him.
After Eisen made sure he had everything he needed, they both stepped out of the ominous room and back into the hallway.
“So, are you going to get that sealed up again?” Eisen asked as they walked away.
“No point now. You have in possession the very reason I closed off the room to begin with. I trust it will stay safe in your hands,” Marin hoped.
The two of them walked back out of the abandoned wing, continuing to talk in a hushed manner. They eventually reached the grand hall of the castle, where Eisen would leave him.
“Good luck to you, Doctor,” Marin concluded with. “Come to me with any breakthroughs, else I will check in with you every once in a while.”
The doctor nodded, said some final words, and hobbled off to a hallway. At the end of it contained a set of stairs that lead to the basement where he now resided.
Marin sighed. He worried if he was making a bad decision, but hoped Eisen would do the right thing.
With that matter now taken care of, he checked the time. Morning was already well on its way. Breakfast had already commenced, and those who ate immediately would be done by now.
That meant it was now time for Marin to head to the main office, where he would meet with Helva. There were other affairs to take care of.
Marin marched to the end of the grand hall, where the offices of Helva and Harrel resided. Marin peered around the corner, and saw that they both had just arrived to begin their work after a short breakfast.
They hadn’t expected Marin to show up at the moment, but they happily embraced him.
“Can you pull for me Gus’s work schedule? I need to see when he’s off,” Marin requested.
“Gus?” Helva repeated. “I believe he’s a morning guard, but let me check just to make sure.” She walked to set of filing cabinets stationed on the opposite wall. While she had them opened, and skimming through papers, Marin looked over to Harrel.
Harrel gave him a nod. “Good to see you, my King,” He stated.
“You as well. Thank you for accounting the kingdom’s finances. I know it’s not an easy job.”
Harrel gave him another nod, then walked off to the backroom without another word. Marin noticed something seemed off about the man. He wondered if something was the matter.
Helva returned to the front with the correct paper. “Yes, he is indeed morning. His hours are from six to two.”
That was good news. That meant Gus had the evening off, and Marin decided it would be during that time his lessons would commence. There was another pressing issue, though.
“Thank you for letting me know, Helva. Say, um…” Marin peered off to make sure Harrel was not walking back over.
“Is everything alright with your husband? I feel as if he’s reserved towards me.”
Helva didn’t answer immediately. She thought, tilted her head, and finally pursed her lips.
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“Can I talk to you tonight in your quarters?” She asked mysteriously.
“Of course!” Marin said back.
“Okay. I will tell you then. I needed to talk to you about this anyways,” she added.
Marin grew anxious. What did all this mean? Did Harrel have something against him? He wondered, but after standing still there for too long, Helva noticed.
“Don’t worry, Marin. It’s nothing dire. If it was an emergency, I’d be telling you now. I’ll just talk to you tonight,” she tried convincing him.
“Right. Right, of course,” Marin responded, shaking off his thoughts. He had to get back to business. “Could you also send Ester up to my residence? You know who she is, right?”
“Yes, the new samurai that Loid hired,” she said.
“That’s her. I haven’t had a chance to talk with her yet, and I’d love to conduct my own interview.”
“I’ll summon her,” Helva confirmed.
“Thank you. Before I leave, any word on RAM?” Marin asked.
“They’ll show up any of these days. I just hope our watchtower guard notices and sends word before they’re right on our doorstep,” Helva joked with a smile.
“Indeed. Have Max make it very clear to the watch that identifying them and telling us immediately is quite important.”
Helva nodded.
“Alright, well, I will be off. I’ll see you later, Helva. Thank you again,” Marin said.
Walking back down the hallway, Marin got lost in thought about Harrel again. He wondered if it was an internal issue Mr. Yoren struggled with, or if it was a struggle with Marin himself. Regardless, there was nothing Marin would want more than to improve any situation that he could.
It could even be a trivial matter, like a desire for a raise in pay, which Marin would happily oblige. Heck, Marin wouldn’t wrestle with paying either of them twice what he did now, that’s how important their work was to him.
The entire Kingdom functioned correctly due to his staff, and they were quite valuable to him.
Marin convinced himself that it was a small, easily taken care of matter such as that. What else could it be? He had to get back up to his quarters now, though. Ester would be on her way up soon, and he was anxious to meet the samurai – a master of swordplay.
Marin finally sat back down in his rolling chair in the center room of his personal quarters. Checking a golden pocket watch, the time was nearing 11 – the day was already well on its way.
After keeping himself busy by reading the mail that came in for him that day, there was a knock on the door.
Marin knew who to expect. “Enter!” He declared in his usual tone.
The knob turned, and it was revealed.
A woman, about thirty. She wore plain robes of a dull blue color, a humble look that many from Ocusomer sported. She had hair as black as ink, tied neatly into a bun above her head. Tucked in her waistband was a scabbard that housed what Marin could only guess was a katana.
Marin knew immediately this was Ester. He quickly stood up, and walked around his desk to greet her.
She seemed shy and quite nervous, but Marin was adamant to put on a welcoming and laid back atmosphere to counter that.
“You must be Ester,” Marin declared as he extended his palm in front of her.
She slowly brought hers up for a handshake.
When they shook, Marin read not a twinge of elemental discipline at all from it. That was expected. Samurai focused on blade mastery to such a degree, that learning an element would only take away from it.
“Please, please. Have a seat. I’ve been excited to meet you,” Marin stated as he gestured her over to one of the two chairs in front of his desk. He then walked back around to sit in his own rolling chair.
Ester grasped the hilt of her blade as she sat down, adjusting the way it pointed while she rested in the chair. It was an action that had become second nature to her.
“It’s a pleasure to be here, my King,” she said in the softest tone.
Marin leaned forward, resting his arms and crossing his hands on the desk before him.
“Well, I’m happy to have you. So, tell me about yourself. What brought you to my castle?” Marin asked.
“I was looking for a change in lifestyle, and saw your advertisement on the community boards in Whitewood City,” she said.
“Okay,” Marin responded.
“I’m originally from Ocusomer Isle. I left after I became a samurai to see the world. After traveling for months… I decided I didn’t want to go back. So here I am,” she explained.
Marin nodded slowly, thinking about it all.
“Are you sure this is a fitting place for you? It’s a lot different than whats on your island home,” Marin said.
“That’s why I like it here. And I really love this castle. I’m happy to put my skills to work keeping it safe. It’s very pretty.” Ester seemed quite adamant.
“Well… okay. I can agree with you on the castle. And we both share a love for it, that’s for certain. Might I ask what your prestige is?”
Ester looked surprise that Marin even knew about that.
“Oh, I’m prestige one,” she said.
Marin nodded. Well, that was better than no prestige. She had at least worked to earn the first level. Even one was mighty enough.
Marin raised his hand, and with a quick crackling noise, fabricated an ice cube in between his fingers. The look of shock on her face said it all. She hadn’t been told that Marin was an ice elemental.
“If I threw this cube of ice at you, would you be able to slice it in half?” Marin asked plainly.
“Um… I suppose I could.”
Without the passing of more than one second, Marin did just that. With no warning, he threw the cube directly at her head.
Within the span of mere milliseconds, she had her sword unsheathed, the blade meeting the cube right in the middle, slicing it in half, sending each side flying in opposite directions. It had been a completely instinctive defensive measure, a reactive movement Ester had almost no control over.
She now stood there with her exposed blade facing downward.
“That’s good enough for me,” Marin stated, feeling complete confidence in his new hired samurai. “Welcome to Nocturne. Have you a schedule that you follow?”
She sheathed her blade and sat back down, replaying in her mind what just happened.
“Loid just has me on call. I do keep watch throughout the day, though. I’ve made up some rounds for myself, keeping an eye on everything,” Ester explained.
“Well if that’s good enough for him, it’s good enough for me. Would you be alright with the odd job here or there?” Marin asked.
She nodded.
“Perfect,” Marin said.
They talked for a while longer. Marin shared some information about himself and the history of the castle, while Ester did the same about her life on Ocusomer. Eventually, he excused her from his quarters, and the day continued. The evening approached as Marin spent the day performing several administrative tasks, answering letters, speaking to more people, and filling out paperwork.
Dinner was served, and Marin as always sat at the end of the table, watching everyone eat while he talked about whatever was on the minds of his friends. Surprisingly enough, Eisen was not present, and after inquiring with Loid, discovered that the doctor much rather eat alone without the company of others in his basement.
Marin shrugged. “Whatever floats his boat. Not like it’s some requirement to eat specifically here.”
“He’s a very antisocial person, isn’t he?” Loid asked.
“Yeah I don’t think he cares much for people in general. He was a hermit when we found him in Tarenfall. We were probably the first people in years to enter his house when I brought Gus in,” Marin replied.
Marge defended him, explaining that it was not uncommon for highly intelligent people to be loners.
“So what are you saying about us, Marge?” Loid teased.
After dinner, Marin entered the kitchens, something he liked doing now and then, to check the status of his cooking crew, and Sherry of course, Loid’s wife.
As always, it was a busy hive of bees in there. Older chefs were in charge of cooking, while younger lads in the kitchen took the burden of cleaning giant pots and pans. As busy as it looked, Sherry enjoyed the hustle and bustle of the kitchen, it kept her young, she said.
In the late evening, Marin was found in his room again. It didn’t take long for Loid to come around. Again, they spent some time in the personal library talking, and telling stories.
There was a knock on his door.
“Were you expecting someone?” Loid asked.
“Hm… yes! Helva, I believe,” Marin answered as he stood up to answer the door.
Sure enough it was her.
“Helva, come on in,” Marin said.
He was anticipating this conversation earlier, and was happy that Helva hadn’t forgot to address the situation.
“Do I need to leave?” Loid asked, reading a somber look on Helva’s face.
“No. Not at all. In fact, you know a bit about what I’m going to tell him,” she answered.
Loid nodded. He knew about Harrel.
“What are you guys not telling me?” Marin demanded as the three of them sat at his desk in the center room.
“Harrel knows that the facts are not adding up with you, Marin,” Helva started off as she crossed her legs and adjusted her glasses.
“What do you mean?”
“He believes you’re not who you say you are,” Loid added. “Let’s just say. Either you being undead or a different person is the only way all the facts about you make sense.”
Marin grabbed his chin over the mask. He was silent for a moment as he processed their words. “...I knew this might happen. In fact, why wouldn’t it? He handles so much work for the castle, information about me… All he had to do was put two and two together.”
“And to be honest, King Marin, it’s been hard lying to him about the truth of you. Yes, I said lying,” Helva mentioned. “It’s no longer concealing the truth. He knows too much. I’ve had to outright deny stuff I know.”
“Okay, okay,” Marin said, realizing the severity of the situation. “So what do we do? Helva, do you trust him to keep my secret safe?” Marin asked.
“Yes.” It didn’t take Helva even a moment to answer. It was almost like she had thought this scenario out already in advance.
Marin looked over to Loid, who kept his head down. Without any other options, there was only one course of action to take.
“Very well. I’ll talk with him tonight.”
It was then silent for a moment as everyone pondered.
“It wouldn’t hurt to tell him about our monetary situation, either,” Helva added. “He already knows you have a gold hoard somewhere. He handles all our finances, and sees that we have some seemingly endless supply of funds. You don’t have to get into detail about it all, but just confirming his suspicions would put a lot of his mind to rest.”
Marin nodded.
He spun around in his rolling chair to look out the windows, facing away from his two closest subordinates.
“...What is the status of our financial situation?” He finally asked after some quiet thought. Marin had not asked or even checked on the vault in sometime out of fear on how bad the depletion was.
“If you’re talking about how much gold we’ve pulled from the vault, it’s been a considerable amount,” Loid started. “I’m not implying though that we’ve put some kind of dent in your fortune. Think more along the lines of drawing a single bucket of water from a well. It’s almost not noticeable when you realize how much is in there,” he explained.
Marin turned back around to see them.
Helva nodded in agreement.
“Alright. Well if we ever DO reach a point where we’ve pulled out more than what’s comfortable, I need to be informed. Because at that point, I need to take action to stop us from bleeding out entirely.”
“I can tell you that the amount we pull out has been less and less lately. Nocturne is turning some gold back around from our exports,” Loid tried calming him.
“Good. That’s good to hear,” Marin responded. “Alright. Well, leave me be and send Harrel in. I will go ahead and talk to him.”
“Thank you, Marin,” Helva said, feeling enormous weight lifted from her. She would feel so much relief after Harrel knew the truth, and she wouldn’t have to hide information from him anymore.
Loid left with Helva, knowing that Sullivan was not exactly thrilled with the whole situation. Marin was troubled about it all, but understood what had to be done. Loid just hoped that he would work it all out with ease.