Chapter 15: The Diplomatic Approach

Getting around town was a lot more irritating when you had to walk.

 

I almost had to wonder how normal people did it, without driving a car everywhere or jumping around with magical enhancement. Perhaps Saphry was a special case, but even with taking the gondola just the very act of walking around the church offices had tired me out, to say nothing of the walk from the Astrian manor to the Maverick one later in the day. I was almost glad Marcolo came with me in case I collapsed in the middle of the way back or, God forbid, I had to climb any more stairs.

 

Despite the apparent difference in our family’s ranks, the Maverick’s manor was actually larger, not to mention nicer, than the Astrian one, which still needled me green. Perhaps Summark was poorer than I thought, or maybe it was just that Ceilos Astrian preferred to spend his desmense’s finances on more practical matters, I wouldn’t know until I had visited Summark. 

 

Inside, I was kind of curious on how Saphry’s homeland actually looked, though I probably wouldn’t have the opportunity before we left. Or hopefully I wouldn’t at least.

 

After some brief goodbyes, Marcolo left me in the care of the Maverick’s servants who led me back into the house. Just as it had looked from the outside, the inside was just as stellar, with the same strange mix of stone and whitewood boarding up the walls and floors. I was led through an entrance hall where dozens of coats hung, though I left my boots on as was the cultural norm in Verol. Further inside, I was led through the main dining hall, a room which seemed to serve as the nexus of every Veroline house, with hallways and stairs splitting off from it to other sections of the manor. The dining table itself seemed large enough to seat twenty, and the wood constructing it was thick and rounded, with every connection banded with silver. 

 

The servant, who looked to be a middle-aged man, led me into the hallway beyond, until finally opening a door to a long empty room filled with four long tables each surrounded by chairs. The servant left me alone there, and I took a seat at one of the corner chairs while Gideon jumped off to walk upon the table.

 

“You think we’ll be able to break into another building?” I asked once it became apparent that we’d be waiting a few minutes.

 

You seem to be doing a lot of that recently. Gideon sniffed. And they didn’t go that great.

 

I nodded. “It does kind of suck when none of the buildings have any vents to crawl through. Ah, those were the days…”

 

Didn’t you hate doing that?

 

“Oh, entirely. I’m convinced they glue razor blades where the seams should be on those things.”

 

I hummed as I stared off at the far wall, remembering some of the grievous ways I’d been injured sneaking into buildings back one Earth. Vents, contrary to the movies, almost always turned out to be a horrible idea, with most being filled with open staples, spiders, dusts, and mold. Most of them didn’t even hold my weight, and collapsed if they went over open air. Even worse, crawling through the vents was loud as hell, especially when I had to constantly stop and use some healing magic to ensure I didn’t just insanguate myself, which led to me being almost shot through them on a couple occasions.

 

So Ryder, you woke up shouting again today…

 

“Eh, you heard that?”  I glanced back at the drake, who’d chosen to sit down at the other end of the table. “Do you remember that weird fiery man I told you about before the warehouse raid?”

 

Somewhat.

 

“Well, I saw him again last night. Though I think he was slightly closer, and Saphry happened to look in his direction for a while longer.”

 

I still remembered the smoke on that tower rising up against the sky, its image seared into my mind.

 

If it were the first time you mentioned it, I would’ve thought that house demon had possessed you. Gideon said. But closer you say? I wonder what it means.

 

“Can’t really answer that question, but I will say: It’s creepy as hell.” 

 

Maybe it-

 

The door suddenly opened, letting in Fredrick, Breale, Andril, and an unfamiliar man in a red tabard with the device of the Everstar upon it.

 

“So you’re already here!” Fredrick nodded to himself. “Good. Saphry, meet Taneri.”

 

I got up and performed a small curtsey, murmuring a greeting.

 

He bowed as well, and I noticed a long sword hanging on his side, a small red jewel inset in the hilt.

 

“Good evening, madame.” He said, his voice a strange accent unlike any I’d heard. “I am Taneri, Andril’s guard’s captain. I have come to help with the investigation.”

 

…

 

 

 

Six hours later, I was ready to admit that the whole ‘get involved’ plan might’ve been a mistake, if only because I had to be subjected to ceaseless reports and plans being made all around the room.

 

Mainly because none of them had anything to do with me.

 

The meeting had begun with a detailed catalogue of all the Temoif nobles and their activities and stance on nay everything in existence, as well as probably reasons for why each one would want Andril dead. This was, by and large, incredibly boring, and by the end I was so out of it I probably couldn’t recite more than a few names said during the process and the fact that the Temoifi or Temoifans or whatever wanted the king to devote everything to some war.

 

But it was after that part when the meeting really heated up, when Taneri and Andril brought a couple tubs filled with what looked like every transaction House Agos had undergone, though they claimed it was only for the past three months. These we had all gone through together, looking for anything that could shine a light on what their actual plan at the end of the month was, or maybe for something that could possibly be a codename for orthungs. 

 

Only after we had exhausted that had we began talking plans and raids, thinking that we might be able to either trick someone into giving something up or stealing some written orders. This was the part I was excited for, because it was the stuff I could actually be good at, but if I had thought I’d be able to join any cool assignments I was sorely mistaken. Apparently I struck them as ‘incredibly distinctive’ and ‘liable to collapse just sitting there’, which somehow completely disqualified me from any of the mentioned field tasks in Taneri’s and Fredrick’s eyes. Unfortunately for me as well, Breale didn’t jump in to argue for me this time, though she looked like she wanted too. So I’d spent that part of the meeting hearing some variation of Fredrick going ‘Why yes I’ll search the houses west of the library tomorrow night’ and wondering why God hated me.

 

What exactly did they mean by distinctive anyway? Was it the hair? There were plenty of white-haired Summarkan’s in Verol! I mean, maybe not in the capital but still…

 

So when we were finally released after a nice dinner, I decided to finally corner Andril to probe the whole magic tutor business, seeing as I’d probably be unable to meet up again until way later in the month. I made sure to wait until we were alone, in the garden as Taneri and the Maverick’s talked some more inside.

 

“You’re sure he’s alone?” I whispered.

 

As good as you’ll get. Gideon confirmed. I’ll warn you if anyone leaves the house.

 

I poked my head around the hedge, finding the red cloaked prince standing in front of a geometric statue of the Everstar, praying. Gideon flew off towards the door, and I nodded in satisfaction.

 

I waited until he began to lift his head before I snuck out from around the corner, not so crass as to interrupt his prayer.

 

“Are you very religious?” I asked curiously.

 

He jolted up and whirled around, relaxing when he saw that it was me. For the first time in the evening, I took a good look at him, realising with a start the weariness hanging about him. Though not quite developed to bags, he had obviously lost sleep the last few nights and some black stubble had appeared on his chin. In his hand he clutched a four pointed pendant, which he tucked back under his shirt as he spoke.

 

“I’m afraid I don’t have a perfect attendance in mass, if that’s what you mean.” He sighed. “It was one of my greatest failings, according to Father Baliman.”

 

“He probably didn’t like me very much then.” I joked.

 

“Didn’t stop him from saving you though.”

 

“True enough.”

 

The sun was beginning to set by this time, and the both of us gravitated to a nearby stone railing sitting over the city to lean on to watch the skies erupt into a billion brilliant orange hues, making the city appear as though it were on fire. At separate points on the horizon, the twin moons snuck into view.

 

Alright Ryder! This was probably a chance, wasn’t it? There wouldn’t be a better time before you were sent off to the academy!

 

“So, Andril-”

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“No.”

 

“-I  was” I paused and looked at him in surprise. “What? No to what?”

 

Andril closed his eyes. 

 

“You were about to ask me to teach you thaumaturgy, right?”

 

I stared at him blankly, stunned into silence.

 

How the hell had he known that?

 

“Why would you think-”

 

“Because Auro tried the same thing last week, and…” He gave me a pained smile. “...and you seem to be somewhat obsessed with it.”

 

“I’m hardly obsessed.” I argued. “Where’d you get that idea from?” 

 

“Saphry, every time a problem comes up the first thing I hear you say is suggest a spell.” Andril laughed softly. “And you should’ve seen your face when I started casting pyromancies below the cathedral, you looked like you might collapse from excitement.”

 

God damn it. Well, this plan was looking like it was doomed to failure already. And after all that effort too!

 

“Well, why not then? Come on, how could it hurt?”

 

Even I knew that one was a long shot, but I didn’t want to skip to the guilt tripping just yet.

 

“Why not?” Andril looked almost as if I suggested we club puppies, and I began to get the faintest idea that this might not have been the best idea after all. “Well, first of all it’s illegal. Very, very illegal. And for good reason too. You’ve heard of the mage kings during the Age of Mountains, right? Or the rebellion over a decade ago?”

 

I stared blankly at him as he began to get more animated. Perhaps asking the son of the king who made the law to break it wasn’t a great idea after all.

 

“Thaumaturgy is pure corruption in the hands of a ruler, Saphry.” He shook his head violently. “What use could such a powerful tool of destruction serve in the hands of a monarch except to inspire further war? When a man has both a country and the power of thaumaturgy, he is not idle, Saphry. He seeks a reason to use that power.”

 

“But I don’t even inherit!” I argued. “Corto does.”

 

Andril was sounding pretty much like a conspiracy theorist. Let alone how dumb it was to just assume literally everyone was warmongerer…

 

“And if he died? Both him and the Markee? Summark is a dangerous place right now, Saphry, and Verol is in a difficult situation itself. We don’t need another potential powder keg in our midst, especially not to fulfill such a stupid reason as a lady’s fancy.”

 

I stared at him, trying not to let myself get rankled by that comment. It was understandable that he would think that… but there was way more at stake here than ‘fancy’. While it wasn’t necessary to get home, learning the basics of what made casting different here would be extremely useful in speeding along any transmutation we did. The only thing ‘fanciful’ about my desire to learn was my want to magically enhance this body just a little…

 

“Exactly.” I changed tact, gesturing over the city before us, the orange fires of twilight slowly fading into the dull blue of the glyphs. “Verol is only getting more dangerous, right? And I’ll need to change too if I want to protect Summark. ‘Summark’s the Shield’, isn’t it?”

 

That last part was a phrase I’d heard several times in Saphry’s memories, though I wasn’t exactly sure on what it implied. From context clues I’d gathered that something lurked beyond the mark, but I had never heard what kind of nation it was that threatened Verol. Whatever it was, the people here never spoke of it by name.

 

Andril looked away, a little taken aback.

 

“That’s a noble goal.” He stared off towards the moonward slopes, into the mist filled farming valleys of the north. “Perhaps I misjudged. But having a valid reason doesn’t mean you should break the law. We all have to set aside our personal crusades in favour of that contract.”

 

“Even if breaking it helps Verol more?” I asked, raising an eyebrow.

 

“Breaking it sets a precedent.” Andril confirmed. “Until eventually you’re asking why we don’t just break it for everything, all in the name of Verol.”

 

If I was still back on my high school debate club, this was where I could scream ‘fallacy!’, but somehow I didn’t think that would work here. This country was looking quite a bit more communalistic than I was entirely comfortable with, and if he had said any more I was almost expecting a hammer and sickle to materialise in his hands. Where was the individualism? The Freedom? Bah.

 

“And nothing would change your mind there?” I asked. “Even if that makes me useless for this fieldwork your guard says he can’t do?”

 

Taneri had been quite adamant about distancing the branch of the royal guard he commanded from any investigation into the assassination, which struck me as relatively paranoid, but there wasn’t anything to help it. So it was still either the four of us (five with Gid) or we started hiring mercenaries, which was something Andril didn’t want to do.

 

“Hopefully” He began, putting quite a bit of emphasis into it. “We won’t have to do anymore of that stuff after this round, and our merry little investigation can end nicely. If that’s the case it’s almost better that you can’t do anything, so that you can go back to normal when you get sent off to the academy as a proper lady.”

 

I caught my breath. Really? Back to normal? ‘As a proper lady’? That entire reasoning seemed to me like something an incel would say, not something I expected from Andril. 

 

And goddamn rude, to boot.

 

“Eh, alright.” I stood up abruptly and pat the prince on the shoulder perhaps a little harder than intended. “Good with me then! A no’s a no after all.”

 

“I… I’m glad you see it that way.” He said, obviously having expected more argument.

 

“Yep! Well, I better get away now.” I yawned exaggeratedly. “It’s getting kind of late, and I have to go prepare to be a real lady after all.” I closed my eyes and nodded gravely. “It might take a while to purge this version of Saphry though, but don’t worry! I’m sure I’ll be back to form before the month is out!”

 

“Wait, that’s not what I-”

 

I turned and started strutting along the path towards the garden exit, leaving Andril blinking in confusion behind me. Gideon flew over and landed on my head as I approached the gate, and I turned once more to wave with a cheerful smile.

 

“Good luck with the investigation then! Hopefully you’re able to convert Breale as well!”

 

“Wait, Saphry!”

 

I shut the gate behind me, and turned left on the street away from the manor, a destination already in mind. Hopefully I’d make it before they closed, or what I was planning would be a little more difficult.

 

You flew off the handle faster than I would’ve imagined.

 

“I really, honestly, don’t care right now.” I said truthfully, maybe a little bit pissed off.

 

Ah! That was a rage quit, I see. Very childish.

 

“It won’t matter.” I resisted the urge to yeet him off into the nearest canal. “Because it’s time for plan B.”

 

Plan B? He thought, somehow managing to imbue it with an incredible amount of sarcasm. Is that where we jump off the tower in the central plaza and hope this is actually a dream?

 

“Plan B.” I said. “Is where I learn magic the easy way: from books.”

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