Hastwell’s Request
“I can’t agree with that.” With no hesitation at all, you shoot down Rin’s plan.
“What? Why?” She seems astounded that you would say no. You are astounded that she would think otherwise. “It’s for your own good,” Rin continues, trying to persuade you. “I made an oath to-“
“We made an oath,” you remind her. “And as I recall, the oath was for us to guard one another. We are in this together, Rinnefiela. We might not have known each other for long, but we know this world even less. Whatever might happen, we can deal with it together. You might think you are fulfilling your obligations by leading the enemy away from me but I cannot fulfill mine if you are not by my side.” You pause, wondering if you may have laid it on a little too thick with the flattery, and observe Rin’s reactions.
Strangely, contrary to what you had expected, she does not blush or stammer or get angry at your words. She does not argue with you or defend her plan or insult you. Instead, there is a thoughtful expression on her face. After a quiet moment of thinking, Rin nods in agreement. “Okay.” That is all she says, but for some odd reason that you can’t quite figure out, the look on her face and the word that she says churns your stomach. Despite that, a small sensation of relief spreads in your heart. Having a heated disagreement here would be unwise.
You hear the sound of wheels rattling, of hooves striking the ground and coming to a halt.
“It looks like he’s here,” says Rin, having picked up on the same sounds that you did.
“Well then, let’s welcome our guest, shall we?”
You undo your spell, allowing Ellen to rouse herself to wakefulness. Shortly after, as she is still blearily rubbing her eyes in an unpracticed manner, Ambrese Hastwell arrives. Dressed in a faded brown overcoat, he stoops and scrunches his broad shoulders together in an effort to get into the tower. The governor of Ontoglia has seemed to aged seven years in a week. His beard is ever more grayer and his wrinkles have deepened. There are dark furrows under his eyes, the sign of a man who has not had much rest at all.
“Ellen?” he croaks, catching sight of his daughter. The emotion in his voice is palpable. His eyes widen, and when they catch his daughter looking back at him, they water.
“That voice… can it be? Father?” Ellen’s own eyes begin to quiver as she stares at her father for the first time.
As they confirm their identities and engage in a heart-warming reunion between father and daughter, you scratch your chin idly and wait for them to finish so that you can get on with your business here. Besides you, there is a slight smile on Rin’s lips.
“You seem happy about this,” you whisper.
“Doesn’t this touch you at all?” she whispers back.
“They are human. Don’t you think of all humans as cattle?”
“T-That might be, but even livestock has family. Don’t you have family?”
“Honor and guilt by association is a fond pastime of the Seven Kingdoms. I can’t see them still being alive and well given what transpired at the time, so it scarcely matters anymore.”
“Ah… That.” She frowns at the memory.
You recall that she lost her father in the exact same event and decide to drop the conversation. Well, things have gone on for long enough. You clap your hands crisply and interrupt the parental bonding. The Governor looks up at you, away from his daughter, and he nods. Sighing heavily, he takes his seat across from you.
“Who is this?” He gestures at Rin. “Can she be trusted?”
She merely bows her head politely and smiles, leaving it up to you to do the talking.
“Of course,” you say smoothly. “There is none other in the world who understands me as much as she does.”
“Well, if you say so, if you say so. Trider Muhchacraken…” He hesitates, the words stalling in his throat.
“Yes, Governor? Is this where you tell me that you forgot to fulfill your end of the deal?”
“No, of course not. The magnatite has been loaded in a carriage just outside the windmill. A considerable amount, just as you requested. I could hardly carry the chest in here by myself, could I?”
You raise your eyebrows. “You came alone? Oh, is it that ploy where you place some form of time-delayed spell in the chest so that I will kill myself when I open it?” You are no stranger to that, having used precisely the same tactic to rid the world of one Pig-Duke of Butarn, a lascivious demon commander with a distasteful lust for human women and gold; it was said that no one knew which he loved more. You had used both, disguising both yourself as a woman to lower his guard – why waste real women on him? – and bringing a booby-trapped chest which contained Lobelia’s best spell as tribute. It had saved you a tough fight and given you a lot more time to loot his castle before the regular army had come storming in to do their part.
The Governor’s bushy eyebrows come together in a fierce scowl. “Why would I?” he growls, both offended and aghast at your suggestion. “I mean to live up to my word. Every bit of it. It is just that I needed to act shrouded in secrecy. Even if I am the governor of Ontoglia I am not able to do whatever I wish with the magnatite in its stores. There will be questions.”
“There are sixteen other people out there,” says Rin once Ambrese has finished talking. The Governor’s face pales.
“Father, what is the meaning of this?” asks Ellen, her hands on her hips. “Do you mean to break his trust?”
Ambrese sighs again, resting his head in his hands. “There should be seventeen.”
“Oh?” The corners of Rin’s lips tug up in a smile. “Hm, interesting. You might be right. What a sneaky one…”
“They are not your people, I assume?” you say, pointing your question at the Governor.
“You assume rightly. They are Duke Hargreave’s. I thought I could lose them if I acted alone, but it seems that they are more resourceful than I had expected. These are new recruits, men that I have not yet time to buy. Though I had an agreement with his previous agents, it seems that the Duke has caught on.”
“Or he could have known from the start and merely turned a blind eye.” You shrug. “No matter. What are they doing here? Do they plan to steal my magnatite?”
“I do not know,” replies Ambrese, wincing as he hears you refer to the magnatite as your possession. “This is part of the reason I led them all the way out here.”
“Oh? A betrayal, then? You would get your daughter back, and keep your magnatite to boot if it worked out for you. I can see why you would take this course of action,” you say nonchalantly as if nothing that is about to happen concerns you in the least.
“I came here with full intentions of handing you over to them if you had lied to me about my daughter’s condition. But I can see that… that you have done your part. This is a miracle. I do not know how you managed to achieve what the priests could not, and to be frank, I am too afraid to ask. If someone told me I could have sold my soul for my daughter to see I would have done so in a flash. I will not question a blessing such as this.” He takes in a deep breath and continues, “Thus I will do what I have to do to keep my daughter safe. Am I wrong?”
You shake your head vaguely and wait for him to speak.
“And if that is the case, I do not care if I have to walk the trials of fire or if I will be damned by the gods themselves. Please, Sir Muhchacraken. Deal with these agents of the Duke.” He bows his head as he pleads for your help.
“Hah.” Your cold snicker makes Ambrese freeze up. “You just want me to get you out from under his thumb, don’t you? But you do realize what you are asking of me…”
“Yes,” admits Ambrese. “I want you to help me remove his influence from my town and my men. And yes, I know that this will mean setting myself against the Duke. It is a price I am willing to pay. Now that you have healed my daughter, there are enough petty nobles in the Duke’s faction that will seek to go to great lengths to undo your work… or worse. Some of them are already openly suspicious of me over the loss of Zayan. For that reason alone I am willing to put myself in your hands. I… I cannot bear the thought of having her lose her sight again.”
“Father…” Ellen gently places her hand on his shoulder. “Do not say that.”
“It will be more painful to lose what you have once known, my child. I believe I am making the correct decision here.”
“You would have me kill them?” you ask quietly.
“I do not care much what you do with them, only that I cannot risk them reporting back now about what has happened here. The Duke is too preoccupied with the upcoming expedition to the Forest of Ruin that it will take time for him to move his resources to bear on Ontoglia. By that time I will be ready, and you will be amply rewarded.”
You lean back, steepling your fingers. “I see. Tell me more about these agents. I do not see why you could not have your town guards arrest them.”
“They were recruited from amongst the best adventurers in the country. This means that their combat potential and experience are both impressive. There are skilled mages and warriors both in their ranks, not to mention the intensive training in subterfuge that they have received upon recruitment. On top of it all, their leader is here.”
“The leader of a band of secretive agents? Some really strong old man?” you conjecture. A person flashes into your mind as a potential candidate. “Hey, he wouldn’t happen to be a blasphemous priest of some sort, would he?”
“No. Who are you talking about? I am talking about the Golden Snake, the Duke’s right-hand woman. She’s said to be an ageless master of poisons and disguises-“
You hold up your hand, interrupting him. “Wait. His right-hand woman, you say... Is she pretty?” you ask.
Ellen giggles. The exasperated expression on the Governor’s face threatens to blow out into a shout, but he manages to keep his temper under control. “N-No… I mean, I don’t know. She is rumoured to always wear a mask in her rare appearances. No one knows who she really is or how old she is…”
Holding his breath, Hastwell waits for your answer.
***
A. “Rin, do it.” You have Rin act to kill all of the men watching you and to capture this Golden Snake alive. There is no need for you to lift a finger. She would appreciate the workout anyway.
B. “Perhaps I should have a chat with them, see what they think about this.” You walk out to check on your chest of magnatite and to parlay with the Duke’s agents. You are sure that they have the capacity to see reason, should they choose to exercise it.
C. “I am only interested in what I came here for. You are on your own for this, Governor, though I am sure you can find some excuse to them for doing what you did.” You retrieve the magnatite from the carriage outside – surely they are not so foolish as to stop you – and teleport away.
