Chapter 116 – Failed Match
“Ah, Lord Ravenharbor. Such a pleasure to make your acquaintance at last! And your lovely family, as well.”
I smiled at Baron Hamlyn Ravenharbor and his family as we entered their Coldpeak residence. On the outside, the manor was little different from the mansion afforded to my barony. In fact, it had been identical in design, with the only differences being the décor on the outside. I expected that was deliberate, especially since, as I learned, the mansions had been built by the crown and given to the barons when they received their titles.
That was a clever stroke in a couple ways. First, it set all the barons on an even playing field, starting from the same point, so that any designs they added were personalizations, which limited some of the extravagant one-upsmanship of nobles competing to build the most luxurious residence they could. More importantly, though, was the fact that it gave the Crown and its spies a set blueprint to work off of for all the manors, in case they needed to sneak spies or assassins in to take care of business.
As for the Ravenharbors? The Baron was a stout, sturdy man, with a thick head of black hair despite being middle-aged, and he still had the muscles and build from when he worked as a longshoreman at the harbor in his youth. That was, it seemed, a tradition with their house. The designated heir would always take up some role around the port when they were younger, to ensure that they knew how the main source of income for their barony worked, from the ground up. The fact that the people saw the young nobles doing actual work, rather than just sitting in a castle doing nothing, helped endear them to the people, as well. And the fact that he was a Level 28 Fighter/Diplomat meant that he had seen his fair share of combat, as well.
Baroness Janat, on the other hand, was a slender, pretty thing, though with a more calculating demeanor. Her uncle was Baron Longchaser, and their marriage was meant to tie the baronies closer together. However, the Level 15 Merchant/Scribe had broken away from her family as Longchaser grew greedier over the years. Apparently, she decided that helping her husband make consistent, reliable profits was a better investment than squeezing the port for every ounce of gold she could, which helped keep the people happy with Ravenharbor’s rule.
Alicen, the oldest child, only daughter, and designated heir to the barony, was of a lighter, more athletic build, though still had her mother’s looks, and her golden hair, something that her husband, a nephew of Baron Highfrost, appreciated. A Level 22 Druid/Hunter, she’d spent some time working in the offices of one of the warehouses at the docks before she had her first child, and had since moved to helping keep the local waters safe, swimming around as a shark. The local gilblin (aquatic goblins) population had apparently dubbed her shark form the Witchtooth, since she could still cast spells while a shark. Attacks on the local shipping and fishermen had gone down drastically since she started hunting the gilblins.
Joachim, the middle child, was a strapping young man of 20, two years his sister’s junior. As a Level 18 Fighter/Commander, he was training as a knight, and, should all go well, was expected to take up the position of Captain of the men-at-arms for the Barony within the next year or so. He was unmarried, so far, since he was the second in line to inherit, should anything happen to Alicen. However, despite being very popular with the ladies of Ravenharbor, he was careful to not sire any bastards.
Then, there was Jasper, all of sixteen years old, and an eager young man. She noticed that he was extremely excited to see her, given the condition of his trousers, though the poor boy did not have as impressive a ‘weapon’ as her Astruth. He was also only a Level 5 Priest/Diplomat, and had clearly not wanted to go out and start fighting monsters.
I’d brought Rastran with me, as my Familiar. He did keep his size to that of a normal hellhound, though he did not disguise his heritage. Together, the two of us were slightly overwhelming to the Ravenharbors, though it was easily explained as just the two of us being in Tier 2, while they were in Tier 1. It was known that higher Tier individuals had a presence about them, after all.
“Lady Pureheart,” Hamlyn started as we sat down to dinner, “I must say, it is nice to see our neighbors to the north enjoying good fortune for a change. The old Baron was a deeply unpleasant man, as I’m sure you’ve been told. However, it has been a bit shocking how quickly you’ve been moving, these last few months, especially since things had been so quiet, in the preceding years.”
I smiled at him, and said, “Oh, that is simple enough to explain, Lord Ravenharbor. You see, I had to spend a few years cleaning up the mess I inherited when I took up the barony. But when the Voice of the World began sending all those announcements, well, a single stone slipping out of place can start and avalanche. Standing in the path is suicide, so one must learn how to ride it out, no?”
Lord Hamlyn nodded. “That is the response I would expect from one who has moved as quickly as you have to capitalize on events. I must admit, I had been content to merely have a neighbor who was sedately competent in her rulership. Seeing you aggressively capitalize on events, while avoiding any serious trouble besides tweaking the nose of that greedy bastard Longchaser and rebuffing those Eclanan inquisitors? It looks as though the tides have changed for Dascora, and in a favorable direction.”
“Yes, but one who is as familiar with the tides as the lord of a prosperous harbor should know that the changing of the tides comes with waves which can knock one over, if they trust too much on their own stance, and ignore the ground under their feet. Something I learned, to my mixed fortune, just days before I set out to Coldpeak.”
Lady Janat leaned forward, interest writ plainly across her face at my words. “To your ‘mixed’ fortune? Normally, one would say either their misfortune, or their great fortune. How was this mixed, in your case?”
I chuckled at that. “Well, it has to do with my recent trip to Crystalshield. I was traveling as an adventurer, so that I did not need to deal with all the pomp and ceremony that was necessary for a baroness traveling out of her lands, and would not need to deal with how Bikar would react to my riding through their lands with my household guards and men-at-arms. I find myself allergic to elven arrows, you see.”
That got a round of polite laughs, as intended. “Well, one thing an adventurer does is take on quests from the Adventurers Guild, completing tasks for coin, and the XP rewards one gets from the Voice of the World. I was venturing into the Dragonskull Caves dungeon with my companions, in order to break through into Tier 2, and one of the quests was to obtain some rare alchemical ingredients, in return for a [Draconic Essence Elixir], which gives the drinker a five-point bonus to one attribute, plus one point per level. For anyone looking to gain power, such a boon is obvious something you would covet, no?”
“Indeed,” Joachim said. “Depending on whether the bonus was random or not, I know more than a few people in my garrison that would do sordid acts to obtain such an elixir. Especially as it looks as though we are heading to another conflict with the demons, and Eclana is on the move.”
“Well, sordid may be the right word. You see, the ingredient we needed to get was the seed of the Lesser Dragonkin in the dungeon, ‘milking’ the males when we found them, and ensuring that the seed was properly collected in the enchanted vials provided by the quest giver. For reasons I am sure you can understand, few male adventurers are willing to do a task like that, even if they are of that persuasion, and that’s assuming that one can restrain the Lesser Dragonkin without slaying them, and keeping them bound long enough for a party member to successfully milk them, and catch the seed in the vial.”
I had to stifle a laugh at the look of shock on the other nobles’ faces. After a moment, Alicen coughed to clear her throat, and said, “D-did you collect the materials yourself, Lady Pureheart?”
“Indeed, I did. I’m sure your father has taught you that a good leader never orders their subordinates to do a task that they are unwilling to do themselves. Of course, as a Mind Sorceress, subduing the Lesser Dragonkin for ‘milking’ was far simpler and less dangerous for me, than it would have been for those with other specialties.
“But the ‘mixed’ part of my fortunes comes from a decision I made later on, when we got to the final level of the dungeon. After all, if the Lesser Dragonkin’s fluids can make such an elixir, what would the same fluids from a Lesser Dragon offer you? So, I earned the Dragonlayer title along with the Dragonslayer one, and gained plenty of materials in the process. The [Greater Dragonic Essence Elixirs] and [Dragonblood Elixirs] we obtained provided substantial boosts to my power, and that of my companions.”
“By the gods!” exclaimed Jasper. “How are you not dead? I have only heard stories, but aren’t Lesser Dragons supposed to be far, far doo big for a mortal own there?
“Oh, the answer is simple: magic. An ability I have allows me to adapt to take on other partners without injury. Which was good, because I wanted those elixirs. Unfortunately, that is where my fortunes became mixed. The dragon, it seems, had a skill called [Forced Fertility]. As one might expect, it ensures that the person it is used on is going to be getting a child from their next liaison, no matter who they are, or how they may be equipped or protected. In my case, I expect to be producing an egg around Halfmark, and I’ll need to wait until then to see what form my firstborn heir will take.”
Lady Janat looked as though her world had been turned upside down. “Lady Pureheart! Surely a noblewoman should not go doing such things! And certainly not talking about them! What will this do to your standing?”
I smiled at her, since I had been half-expecting such a response. “My standing with anyone who matters in Windwater Barony is secure. Not because of propriety or noble blood, but through my deeds, and the actions I’ve taken to see my people move forward, meeting the future as it is. After the disaster of the old baron, having a baroness who is open with her desires, while fighting on the front lines to protect her people? You cannot make a scandal or blackmail material out of things that a person admits openly to.”
I paused, and then looked the baroness in the eye. My tone was serious, but not cold, as I said, “Also, I believe that part of the reason you asked to meet me this evening, besides simply meeting the neighbor, as it were, was to try and sound out a match between the unwed Baroness of Windwater and the third child of the Baron of Ravenharbor, no? I dislike the idea of disrespecting a neighbor and trade partner by putting on false pretenses, drawing someone into decisions they might otherwise avoid. Especially since there won’t be any doubt about things before Halfmark, as the egg will make itself visible before I lay it. And when the child is born, well, I plan to publicly acknowledge them as my heir. Would you rather I speak of it now, or find out about it after bad-faith negotiations? Which better serves both our lands?”
Joachim chuckled, and said, “She has you there, Mother. There would be no hiding a dragon born from a Baroness. She may have been indelicate about how she went about telling the story, but it is far better to hear it now, in private, before you went and started publicly speaking about Jasper’s match.”
Lady Janat frowned at her son, and then at me. “But don’t you have any shame? You’ll be seen as worse than a common harlot!”
“Lady Janat, I own everything I do. Everything, with everyone. No regrets, and nothing that can be held over my head because I would be embarrassed to have others know it. Including how I’ve conducted ritual magic to allow me to take on the forms of hellhounds, unicorns, and dragons.”
Alicen leaned forward. “That sounds like a druid’s magic, but the [Wild Shape] ability does not include planar creatures, or dragons. What is this ritual?”
“It is called the [Ritual of the Beast]. Lay with a beast, to completion, and you gain the ability to change into that form whenever you wish. And when you go up in Tier, one of the evolved forms of that beast opens up to you, as well. Yes, it is less flexible than druidic magic, and requires a separate ritual to collect each base form, but if you are willing to pay the price for power? Well, there are many options, some of which can become very, very strong, in time.”
“Alicen!” Lady Janat snapped. “You cannot be thinking about conducting this… perverse ritual yourself! You will be baroness someday! You must consider your image!”
“Yes, Mother. But if I can arrange a meeting with a Sea Drake, and then eventually get to Tier 2? What could be a better defense for the barony than having a baroness who can become a Sea Dragon at will? Especially with our position on the coast?”
Suffice to say, any thought of a match between myself and Jasper Ravenharbor was forgotten completely.