Chapter 4: 4 – Pep Talk

Freeing Blake from prison had turned out to be a well-justified investment. I had my doubts at first, not only because of the fact that he was a notorious thief, but also because he looked too frail to be of any good to anyone. 

But he had spirit, and after a bath and a fresh set of clothes, I had discovered that there was a decent young man under all the dirt, grind, and dried blood.

His health improved almost immediately after taking a few healing potions, and a good night's rest. 

My only worry now was that I was burning through the money my ex-friends gave me like a forest fire. But I told myself it would all be worth it in the end. 

During the month following the fall of the Hamonets, as the commoners now referred to the coup d'etat organized by my uncle, the former queen had been declared dead and both her children missing.  

I didn't worry about my sister. She was a more talented mage than I could ever dream of becoming, and I had seen her teleport away right after the fire started. 

Now that Baron William had taken over my castle, his old residence was left almost unguarded. Through somewhat unorthodox means, I had obtained information about a series of letters that the queen of the neighbouring country had written to him. They were all very sexual in nature and could lead to a scandal if they were to be exposed to the public. 

However, if these letters were to be returned to Queen Isabella, she would no doubt send an army to dethrone Baron William. Despite their past extra-conjugal relationship, she was overtly hostile to that man, no doubt due to the blackmail he'd subjected her to throughout the years.

I had bribed some of his former house staff and obtained not only a detailed map of his estate but also some notes on when and where the guards were most likely to be.

I was hunched over said map, studying it carefully, when someone knocked at the door of the private suite I had rented in a local inn. This person didn't bother waiting for a response, and came in saying:

"You know they're serving dinner downstairs, right?"

I looked up from the map, and was greeted with the sight of Blake leaning against the doorframe, arms crossed over his chest. He truly did clean up nicely. At first, I had my doubts as to how he'd managed to infiltrate the Vangroof keep, but with his physique, he could have very easily blended with the dozens of entertainers who came and went to the keep at all times of the day. 

He was tall and lean. Although he clearly hadn't eaten properly in quite a while before meeting me, his muscles were still noticeable from below the short sleeves of his tunic. The one feature that stood out the most was his bright green hair, a rare trait that highlighted some, perhaps not so distant, elven heritage. 

"Then go grab us both a plate and come back here quickly. There is much I have to tell you while the night is still young." I spoke.

A few moments later, he was back with two bowls of stew, and I freed some space on the table next to the map.

"So, what's so precious it needs your loyal servant to thieve it for you ?" Blake asked in between two slurps. 

Although he had become more eloquent since he left the prison, he didn't have enough manners to eat with a spoon. I didn't bother correcting him. We had more important matters at hand.

 "Letters. Of the private kind. They will all have this seal on them, and will probably be hidden in this room."

I showed Blake a seal and pointed at the Barron's private study. This seemed to have caught his attention, as he stopped gulping down stew as if it were his last meal, and turned his attention towards the map. He studied it for some time, and hovered his finger over a few corridors, probably trying to figure out the best way in.

“Say, exactly how valuable are these letters?” He asked, his eyes still on the map. “Not that I’m thinking of snitching them for myself or anything.” He quickly added, and glanced up at me.

“Very. They could start or end a war.” I told him after a few seconds of consideration.

I decided that it was best to be honest if our partnership and my plan were to succeed.

“I think the best route in is through that window, just over the back entrance. From what the maids have told me, it is often left open. There is also a tunnel connecting the vine cellar to an off-site warehouse. I would assume that route should also be quite viable, now that the Baron himself has left the estate.” I continued.

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“Nah.” Blake didn’t even take a second to think it over. “There are way too many people going to and from the back door, and the wine cellar is probably on lockdown, if the baron is gone. He won’t want us simple people stealing his precious mead, would he?”

I sigh. Blake made an excellent point. I was right to get him on board. Had I gone in myself, I would have either been caught, or wasted my time, neither of which were a good look on a prince presumed dead.

“Sorry. I don’t mean to criticize your plan or anything.” Blake suddenly apologized, probably misinterpreting my sigh for annoyance. “I mean, it’s great and all, just -”

“How would you do it?” I asked him calmly.

“Me?” For a second he seemed surprised at my question. “Well, believe it or not, the safest bet will be to enter through the master bedroom. Nobility likes to soundproof their bedrooms, as you probably already know.”

“Hey, don’t give me that look!” I interrupted him, picking up on the sub-text in his voice and the look on his face. “I do not partake in orgies.”

His expression told me that he wasn’t buying it. I wasn’t sure when exactly he had figured out that I bled blue, but as long as my full identity wasn't exposed, I did not mind him knowing.

“Anyway,” He continued, “It will be a bit tricky breaking in without proper lockpicks and my daggers, but I’m confident I’ll find something on-site to pry the window open.”

“Oh, speaking of,” I suddenly remembered something. 

Blake turned towards me with a questioning expression. 

“I retrieved these from the prison warden.” I said, as I pulled out a set of lockpicks, two daggers and a set of throwing knives from under my trench coat. I had been walking around with them all day, to the point where I had forgotten they were even there. 

“No you didn’t.” Blake said with doubt in his voice, after quickly glancing at the display. 

“The lockpicks I believe to be yours, the rest, how to put it, had to be replaced due to structural damages.” I explained. 

Blake nodded, probably imagining what condition his weapons were in after several months in damp and cold conditions. 

“You wouldn’t also happen to have a spare belt to hold them under that magic coat of yours?” he finally asked, as he picked up the items. 

I shook my head. To demonstrate my point, I lifted the sides of my trench coat, revealing the thick leather belt and shoulder harness I used to carry my long sword and other small items. 

“That’s a shame.” Blake said, without much regret or disappointment in his voice.

He then proceeded to hide the weapons under the waistband of his trousers. I smirked, imagining that this was exactly how highwaymen got through city gates. 

“Should I head out now?” He asked, accentuating the word ‘now’.

“We’ll be leaving together in about an hour. You should use this time to get some seconds downstairs, while they haven’t run out of the stew.” I said with a friendly smile. 

He gave me a strange look, but picked up his bowl and went downstairs without questioning or arguing. Truth be told, I didn't need that much time to prepare, but I preferred sending Blake into the mansion on a full stomach.

I started packing things up. We were not going to return to this inn, and with a bit of luck, I wasn’t going to be returning to this city in a long, long while.

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