"I'm not saying that knowing important people in high places is a must to deal with bureaucracies, but it most definitely helped make things easier." - Saying attributed to the Silver Maiden.
After she gave the sisters time for a joyful embrace, Aideen talked with them about more serious matters, like the predicament they were in and whether they had any idea on what they were going to do next.
Naturally, she couldn't stay in Knallgant for too long, yet at the same time she was loath to leave the two sisters on their own there. Not with the guild still being around and liable to extend their greedy paws towards them once more.
Neither of the sisters had any idea what they were to do next, so she had them pack their few belongings and brought them to someone she thought would likely have a better idea what to do with them. Namely, Ginnie.
Fortunately the dwarven princess had left her with an address should she need to find her, which Aideen brought the sisters to. Both sisters stared slack-jawed at the literal mansion they found at the designated location, and stared some more after they were allowed in. All it took was for Aideen to show the guard at the gate the token Ginnie gave her.
The middle-aged dwarf welcomed them herself at the front door of her mansion, which made both sisters bow down in surprise. Even as immigrants they were all too aware just what distinguishing features the royal family had.
It took a bit of coaxing from Aideen and a loud, friendly guffaw from Ginnie before the sisters lifted their heads and followed them into a living room within, where they sat down and Aideen explained the situation the sisters were in.
Halfway into the explanation, Ginnie latched on to something, and asked the sisters if they had a copy of the contract for the debt and indentured servitude they were forced into. When Magda replied in the affirmative and produced the copy, the old dwarf placed a monocle over her right eye and carefully perused the document.
"Well, well, well," said Ginnie with a truly vicious grin after she read through the document. "I had not thought that there'd be results this fast when you came here. Someone's been naughty."
"What'd you find?" asked Aideen. In reply, Ginnie turned the document around so it faced her and pointed with her thick finger at several articles in a row. All that managed was to further confuse Aideen, though. "Uhh… I could read that, but I must confess that I'm not exactly familiar with all the legalese there… much less dwarven legalese."
Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.
"Right. Forgot that. Putting it simply, these articles claimed that these two girls owed a certain sum of money for services rendered, and would pay for it via indentured servitude," explained Ginnie, the vicious grin still on her face. "Under Knallzog law, that fell under moneylending, which this guild had no permit for. We also do not recognize private enforcement of indentured servitude. That is strictly the jurisdiction of the judicial offices."
"Ah. So the guild fucked up with their rules lawyering," said Aideen as understanding dawned on her. "I take it you'd be pushing them with these points then?"
"Either they done goofed or they hired a cheap drunk for a lawyer," replied Ginnie with a face that basically yelled just how much she was about to enjoy what she was about to do. "Either way, that's still a count of unlicensed moneylending and illegal enforcement of indentured servitude. Plus an attempted assault of a foreign dignitary, I guess."
"What about these two? I don't think it'll be safe for them to remain where they lived before," Aideen asked on behalf of the sisters, who were still too stunned to speak for themselves, as they tried to digest the fact that they were seated in the same room with the current king's royal aunt. "I wouldn't be in town for too long after all."
"You can leave them to me. They're important witnesses, so I will take care of their safety myself," said the old dwarf with confidence. "And after I finish making those asses at the guild squirm, I can always take them along with me, if they want to come, that is."
Both sisters nodded like birds pecking on some grains at the suggestion, which caused the old dwarf to guffaw loudly once more. Ginnie chatted with Aideen a bit more before they bid their farewells, the two sisters left at the mansion where they would be safe.
Ginnie would pursue the guild's faults on the dwarven judicial system, which Aideen had zero idea about. She had asked Aideen to stick around for at least a week more though, which was a curious request. Aideen agreed to it anyway, as it was not like she was in a hurry.
As for herself, she decided to go fishing a few more times. If the guild was smart, they'd probably have found out that she knew Ginnie and decided she was off-limits. From what she saw so far, though, she doubted they were that clever.
Aideen made herself very visible over the next week, as she went around the worse parts of the underground city - what would be the equivalent to suburbs and slums elsewhere - and dispensed healing and medicines freely as she passed.
Not unexpectedly, she was accosted four more times just in that week alone. The first was another attempt to intimidate and warn her off, with the person sent also trying to bribe her with benefits as the carrot to the thugs' sticks.
She just left them all in crying heaps on the ground with every single one of their joints expertly dislocated, like the first group she ran into. None of these ones had seemed like they had a sympathetic past to them.
The next three attempts were straight up murder attempts. First an assassin who tried to stab her with a poisoned dagger. Then another pair who struck at her in a dark alleyway, and finally a full group of a dozen thugs who openly came at her with cudgels and cleavers drawn.
These ones she gave a taste of their own medicine, though she took care to keep them alive, just so badly injured they would never hurt another person ever again unless they received the help of an expert healer.