Chapter 117 – Morning
On the morning of 23 Telvast, I had a light breakfast, before heading out with Astruth and Zazriel to go on a brief tour of the area around my manor. While this part of the city was primarily reserved for the residences of the wealthy and powerful, there were still some shops and other buildings, though all of them had a more upscale clientele than those in the Merchant or Crafting districts. Or, rather, they were more focused on nobles, and their desires.
Stopping briefly in a magic store, just to see what was available, I ended up buying two [Tier 1 Skill Tomes], single-use books that required the efforts of a scribe and an enchanter, as well as someone who already had the skill, in order to make. They were hard to make, but every [Tier 1 Skill Tome] contained a Tier 1 skill, and granted it to the person who used the tome, without their needing to pay a skill point for it. An expensive, but legal version of the Skill Orbs, perhaps. Of course, some skills were far more in demand than others. The two skills I picked up were [Cantrip Magic] and [Travel Magic]. For two thousand gold a piece, they weren’t cheap, and certainly wouldn’t be useful in combat, but some ‘general use’ spells and ‘get where I’m going’ spells weren’t bad to have.
Cantrip Magic
Mending – Repair damage to clothing and items, fixing damage and removing signs of wear.
Mage Hand – Conjure a spectral hand capable of manipulating up to 0.5 kg of mass per level. Not capable of wielding weapons in combat.
Detect Poison – Detect whether poisons are present in the area, and locate them. Can determine whether food or drink is poisoned.
Magelight – Create a floating orb which sheds light like a candle.
Create Water – Create up to 0.5 liters of clean water per level.
Purify Food and Drink – Makes spoiled, rotten, poisonous, or otherwise contaminated food and water pure and suitable for consumption.
Wake Up – Harmlessly wake a sleeping creature. Must have a CHA higher than that of the caster to wake creatures under magical sleep.
Prestidigitation – Create a variety of nondamaging magical effects.
Signal Flare – Conjure a bright flare of light, designed to signal others at a distance. May impair vision if used at close range.
Makeover – Conjure makeup and style hair to your preferences. Makeup lasts for 1 hour per level, or until removed.
Minor Elemental Ray – Conjure a ray of Acid, Cold, Electricity, or Fire, that does no more than 1 point of damage, but can cause secondary effects. Precision scales with INT.
Travel Magic
Know Direction – Determine which direction is North, even underground.
Longstrider – Double the target’s land speed for the duration.
Feather Fall – Reduce falling speed to 1 meter per second, preventing fall damage.
Temporary Shelter – Conjure a stationary bubble offering sanctuary from the elements. Inside the bubble the air is temperate, with no wind. Keeps out rain and harmful gasses. Prevents intruders from entering.
Water Breathing – Allow up to INT/10 targets to breathe underwater for the duration.
Freedom of Movement – Target is able to move freely through difficult terrain or underwater, and is immune to snares, grapples, or other restraints.
Conjure Bridge – Create a bridge that can hold up to 100 kg per level, and extends up to 2 meters per level.
Find the Path – Discern the quickest route to a destination.
Teleport – Teleport with up to INT/10 others to a location you have visited before, or have a clear description of. The accuracy of the description may cause errors in the spell, throwing the teleportation off by up to 500 kilometers.
Word of Recall – Teleport yourself and up to INT/10 others to a designated location you call home.
Plane Shift – Move yourself and up to INT/10 others to another plane of existence. Placement on the new plane not entirely under the caster’s control.
Greater Teleport – Teleport to a location you have visited before, or have a clear description of, without errors. Can take yourself and up to INT/10 others.
Interestingly, when I checked my Available Skills list, I noticed that the two skills did not have ‘Improved’ versions, like the rest of the magic types I’d unlocked. Which made sense, really. These were considered basic utility magics. Anything more would likely be the domain of a dedicated support class or profession, probably something related to managing caravans or armies.
Of course, the store had more than just [Skill Tomes]. There was a collection of magic items, mostly tools like wands, scrolls, and items that did not take up body slots with the Voice of the World. I ended up paying another twelve thousand gold for a [Nobleborn’s Hat of Cunning] and an [Orb of First Strike]. Of course, I didn’t use them, just as those items. Instead, I had Zazriel work her magic, combining them with my [Succubus’s Cursed Circlet of Brilliance] and [Goldseeker’s Lucky Plug]. The results were a nice upgrade to some of my older items, which had been lagging behind my other kit.
Nobleborn Succubus’s Cursed Circlet of Brilliance
Type
Head
Rank
Uncommon
Price
8000 gp
Weight
0.5 kg
This silver circlet was designed to enhance the wearer’s intellect, and would be prized by many mages, if not for the curse placed on it by a powerful succubus.
+200 INT
Succubus’s Kiss – If the wearer has the [Carnal Arts] skill, their MP regeneration doubles for 24 hours after they use the skill.
Curse of the Monster Fucker – While wearing this item, the wearer becomes attracted to creatures they normally would not be. Gender is no longer a concern for them, and monsters are fair game, as well.
Nobleborn’s Cunning – Add INT to CHA when using social skills on nobles. Add INT to WIS to resist social skills from nobles.
Goldseeker’s Lucky Plug of First Strike
Type
Tool
Rank
Rare
Price
9500 gp
Weight
0 kg
This polished metal device is set with a red crystal on its flared base. When worn, it bestows the wearer with a certain degree of luck, in all things.
+100 Luck
Goldseeker – Coin drops looted from enemies are 50% more lucrative.
First Strike – Any successful damaging spell or attack against a foe that is either unaware of you, or has yet to act in a fight is an automatic critical hit.
The result was not exactly earth-shattering. Yes, the new circlet ended up boosting my maximum MP by 13000, but I already had tons of MP, and adding more to my CHA to use social skills on nobles, or adding to my WIS when resisting those skills from nobles was nice, but limited. I wouldn’t turn down any of that, honestly. And the ability to make my first hit of every combat a critical hit was very nice… if I didn’t already have a ‘fuck off, I’m about to erase you from existence’ spell. However, bigger numbers were still bigger numbers, and I wasn’t going to turn that down.
As we left the magic shop, an exotic pet supply store caught my eye, as well. Nobles were known for having rare or unusual pets, and those pets often had unusual grooming needs. I happily bought a [Hellhound Grooming Kit], which had brushes and other items useful for keeping Rastran’s coat, fangs, and claws looking resplendent, and would help prevent some health issues down the line. Of course, mostly I just intended to let my pet enjoy some attention from myself, and the others in my party. I’d learned early on in my last life that little things like this could often make the biggest difference in keeping your people happy and loyal.
Unfortunately, the pet store did not have anything for dragons. Not surprising, really, since very few people, even amongst the nobility, would ever be in a position to get a draconic creature as a pet. Any items for those types of creatures would almost certainly be custom creations. Otherwise, you’d be stuck hoping that kits designed for reptiles or other scaled creatures might work, and comparing any draconic creature to a lizard was insulting, to say the least.
Thankfully, Frostmaw preferred to tend to his own grooming. While he certainly enjoyed getting attention from myself, or the others in my group, he was still a dragon, and proud. There were things he simply wanted to handle by himself, and I wasn’t going to force the issue.
Wiling away the morning was enjoyable, of course, but I could not spend all day on my own desires. After all, I had a lunch meeting with the General in charge of the Northern Reaches. While his lands weren’t the largest, as the one defending the major land border with the Theocracy, he General Helecan was an important figure in the kingdom, meaning it would be quite rude to be late.
Like my manor, and the one belonging to Baron Ravenharbor, General Helecan’s manor was built on the same standard plan as the rest of those gifted to the barons. Unlike the two I had already seen, however, there was little in the way of decoration, here. Indeed, the only décor I could see from the outside was the crest of the Northern Reaches emblazoned on the wall above the main door, and a small memorial in one corner of the grounds, with a flag I hadn’t seen before standing over it.
And his manor might be better described as a military compound. Walls of stone rose up around not just the manor, but the two buildings nearby, which looked as though they’d been turned into a barracks and armory, with the road converted into a shooting range. An iron gate stood at either side of the blocked-off road, locked and secured from inside. Two guards in military uniform were stationed outside each gate, and two more were on the inside, plus another guard at the door to the manor itself. It wasn’t quite a full-on fortress, but the General clearly gave thought to making his manor more defensible than the surrounding buildings, if trouble started in the city.
One thing that was clear was that the General must have had the utmost trust of the King, to be allowed to go even this far in fortifying his manor. But then, apparently the General had been in command of the Northern Reaches since the founding of the Kingdom, and had never once shown any interest in any politics that did not lead directly to better defending the land from the Theocracy. Which meant that not only was he utterly loyal to the kingdom, but also that the Theocracy no doubt wanted him dead in a bad way. Just as they no doubt wanted me dead, if they’d heard about the things I’d done to their people. So, keeping a few obvious defenses in place wasn’t a bad idea. Too bad my position was not strong enough to get away with something like that, just yet.
As we approached the gate, the two guards moved, crossing their halberds in front of the gate in the universal sign for ‘you are going to stop and answer questions, or you are going to walk away, if you know what’s good for you’. Those kinds of signs were about as subtle as a brick to the face. The guard to the right looked at us, and said in the rough voice of a seasoned veteran, “Halt! Who goes there?”
Looking more closely, I could see that both these guards were on the older side. Not elderly, exactly, but they both were at least middle-aged, with more grey than brown in their beards. They were fit, certainly, and still had a military bearing, but they were clearly not line soldiers. Especially not with them being Level 35. Most likely, they were veterans, given this assignment so that they could remain in uniform, even when they were too old to stand on the front lines of war. It allowed them to be useful, while allowing the younger men and women to serve where they might do the most good.
I took a step forward, and said, “Baroness Alis Pureheart of Windwater Barony, along with my attendant and familiar. I believe that I am expected?”
The guard’s eyes flickered to what must be his [Appraise] results on the three of us. Then, he nodded, once, before making a signal to one of the guards inside the gate. The locking spell shimmered and died, temporarily, and the gate swung inward on silent hinges. Looking back at me, the guard smiled. “Aye, Lady Pureheart. We have been told to expect you. The General is most interested in making your acquaintance. Please enter.”