"Thank you. I would be glad for an escort, as my previous escort seemed to follow a different master than I. Good riddance, I say; I hope that my new escort will be better company than the old."
Accept the escort. Chat with them about the state of our respective land. Don't reveal anything that would get the King angry at me, but answer their questions. If the latter conflicts with the former, explain why I can't tell them. Take a mental note of whatever I learn.
[4+1] After talking to them for a while, you realise that they seem to think you are some sort of emissary of the sixth clan. You don't entirely disavow them of this belief, but you don't deny your origins in Meridia either. They seem to accept this. [2] Unfortunately, they don't talk a lot about the inner politics of their peoples, perhaps because they don't know or perhaps they're a little more guarded than you thought after all.
It takes a few more days of travel, but you reach Jalbron with your escort. On your way you cannot help but notice the areas where the turf has been apparently peeled away to make room for open-cast mining. The town is palisaded and located atop a defensible hill. Inside it consists of a cluster of daub and wooden huts, with one stone longhouse for the chief. The only other stone building is the forge, where the local smith appears to be making axeheads.
After a wait, you are ushered into the longhouse where the chief, an enormously fat man wearing multiple rings and bangles (and topless to boot), is sat upon a very wide wooden throne. A pair of nubile concubines lounge either side of him, holding serving plates of meat and ale. You aren't offered a seat, but a serving girl does present you with a small plate of devilled eggs.
"Greetings, lowlander," says the chief. "No doubt you know who I am, but to avoid embarrassments I may tell you that I am Jabbra Hett, chief of the Jallings. And you are an emissary from Meridian? Pray tell, what brings you to my humble abode?"
[4] You are unable to deliver orders to your guards from inside a dungeon, but one of them does approach the mercenary, Korgoth, who just arrived in the capital with an offer of payment. Perhaps he will come to your rescue.
Well, my men have been whining about the lack of food for a while. Money tends to fix that. I'll gladly accept your payment. What exactly needs done, how much cash you giving, and what are your conditions? Raping and plundering allowed? If not, it'll cost ya.
Before you can settle payment, news comes of the riot at the palace gates. With the resolution of the conflict, your prospective employer disappears, but it occurs to you that the castle is probably in quite dire need of more troops after the ones they lost. You might try hiring out to the Crown again.
You have a company of 100 Professional Light Soldiers (averaging out cavalry and infantry bonuses), who require an upkeep of £15/year. Your treasury is zilch right now, but they accept deferred payment in exchange for 50% looting rights whenever you go a-looting. You need to get enough money from pay/loot before the end of the year or they will desert.
Last but not least, remained the issue of Alexis. Arcadius decided to visit her later in her quarters. Despite the troubles and errors, she was one of his most devoted servants and he trusted her with a mission that would weigh on the religious future of the kingdom.
You receive no response when you knock on Alexia's door. You enter anyway to find a disturbing sight. The spymistress' throat has been cut, and next to the body is a curt note from the new leader of the blades informing you that they have terminated their contract and are departing for other lands.
You are now short a spymaster and a spy network.
Meanwhile, in the dungeons, Richard McGrieve has gone completely into his own mind and does nothing but sing along to the mad singer's songs. He is now useless for any confessional purposes - or anything else.
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Topic: You are a Lord II (Read 34192 times)