by Eric Ugland
“The team or the goblins?”
“Both. But while the night goblins are aptly named, it would seem our teams are more focused on daytime activities.”
There was a gentle knock on his door, and before Nikolai could say anything, the door opened. A face popped around.
Nathalie Glaton, the knight, and somehow cousin to the former Emperor. Technically a bodyguard of mine, at least as assigned by her brother, the Viceroy of Osterstadt. But now she was the head of the City Guard. Which wasn’t the actual name of the policing body. Which reminded me that we needed a policing body, or at least a more formal concept of Guard and Police amongst Coggeshall.
You have been offered a quest by the holding of Coggeshall:
Making a Blue Line
Build up and formalize the policing of Coggeshall. Get a Guard in place, and establish criminal law and penalties.
Reward for success: Permanent Crime Reduction in Coggeshall
Penalty for failure (or refusal): Permanent Crime Increase in Coggeshall
Yes/No
“Are you kidding me?” I said softly.
“Oh,” she said, “sorry—“
“No, no,” Nikolai said. “It’s fine — we were finishing up.”
“It’s just that it’s time for the meeting.”
“The meeting?“ I asked.
“A nightly thing we’ve been doing as the council. It was Lee’s idea. To get us all on the same page each night and go over what the POD for tomorrow will be.”
“POD?”
“Plan of the day.”
“Ah, okay. Seems like that’s something I should attend.”
“It most certainly is.”
“It’s good to see you’re back, Duke Coggeshall,” Nathalie said.
“Thank you, Nathalie.”
She nodded once, then disappeared.
“Where is this meeting?” I asked.
“The upper dining hall.”
Chapter Thirty
It turns out there were a number of rooms I had no idea about. Hell, walking around my mountain home, it felt like I had no idea about anything in the holding anymore. So much was different. And interesting. I wanted to just walk around and explore.
And yet, once again I just followed Nikolai. There were two dining halls, technically three if you counted the private dining hall of the duke, which was me, which meant no one had used it yet. The main kitchens and food storage for the holding were on the same level as the main dining hall, with an extension upstairs to service the upper dining hall. Which had no real difference except for a few windows looking out over the greens. It was also a bit smaller.
According to Nikolai it had been generally agreed upon that children and rambunctiousness were limited to the lower dining hall, with the upper dining hall being for those who wanted a more calm eating atmosphere. It was also available for such things as private events — you just needed to check with Gladys to see if the room was open. I’m not joking, there was a dwarf named Gladys who was in charge of room assignments, including when people wanted to reserve the upper dining hall for birthdays.
It was nice enough, you know, for a group eating establishment. There was a buffet-style spread along one wall, and a row of small windows on the other. We still lacked glass, which really bothered me. Most of the Council had already arrived, and were arranged at a table as far from the door to the hall as possible. They’d already gotten their food, and there was a convivial atmosphere between them, jokes being shared, tales of the day laughed over, and even a bit of food being tossed playfully between the Mancers.
I looked down at my ratty clothes, already beaten to hell from my trip across the Empire, and realized that it would have been better for me if I’d done something little, like, I don’t know, washed any part of me before eating. The food was steaming and fresh, and looked delicious. It was basic fare — a huge salad, a few different meats, breads, and what looked like mashed potatoes. I took a big heaping of, well, everything, and balanced my three plates as I walked over to the meeting table.
There was a single seat left open at the head of the table.
My initial impulse was to force people to move, to say that I didn’t want to sit at the head of the table and make a minor fuss making sure everyone knew that I was no better than anyone there. But I thought about what Nikolai had said, and, oddly, what Yuri had said to me. That the leader needed to be seen as the leader. To be seen and respected as a duke. Or something along those lines. It was around that moment I started to accept that I was in a different world, one that didn’t necessarily have values that lined up with the ones of my old world. This was a place where people valued hierarchy, where there was a sense of comfort derived from having a powerful person at the top. Someone who would shoulder the duty of protecting all those underneath him or her. Which was always what I cared about most. I just needed to step up my game.
You have been offered a quest by the holding of Coggeshall:
Look the Part One
You are a duke. Look like one and act like one.
Reward for success: Increase morale amongst Coggeshall
Penalty for failure (or refusal): Decreased morale
Yes/No
I accepted the quest, and sat down at the head of the table, spreading my plates out in front of me. I got a subtle nod from Lee, as if he’d seen and understood my hesitancy. I looked at the group, the faces around the table, and I smiled. There was Wian Stokes, former head of the Thingmen and current co-lead of my military, Harmut: chief of the dwarves, Baltu: old snowbold and possibly the smartest kobold alive thanks to a pilfered potion of intellect, Mercy Caughlin: hydromancer, Nathalie Glaton: other co-lead of my military and head of the Guard, as it was, Tarryn Flynn: warmancer, Lee: a friendly face from Earth, Nikolai: chancellor and all around nice-asshole, and Ragnar: Lutra and sass. Skeld was, for obvious reasons, missing. And Bear was with him, doing what she could to help the healers.
“Council of Coggeshall,” I said, “I am happy to be home. Now, let me hear how my realm has fared.”
Lee made the tone-it-down-a-bit-buddy gesture.
“Your grace,” Harmut, the chief dwarf said, “first, let me welcome you. Second, while we have been moving at lightning speed through our various construction projects, we are running up against a bit of a roadblock.”
“This is not a matter that needs to brought before the council,” Nikolai said.
“Let me hear it,” I said.
“Thank you your grace,” the dwarf said while Nikolai shot daggers my way. “It is simply that we are running out of space to store the stone blocks.”
“I’m a bit out of the loop,” I said, “so forgive me that I need to ask what stone blocks you’re talking about.”
“The ones that used to be in this very room,” Essie the geomancer said. “We take the stone out of here in blocks, but then we have to store the blocks.”
“And we’re overflowing with blocks,” the dwarf chief said.
“How many of these blocks are we talking about?” I asked.
“Did you come through the entrance hall and see the grand hall?” the geomancer asked.
“I did. Looking great, by the way.”
‘Thank you. But that was full of stone. That’s now in blocks.”
“That’s a lot of blocks.”
“And that’s just one room,” dwarf chief said. “We got hundreds of rooms we’ve cleared out.”
“Where are they being stored now?”
“They are being put outside,” Nikolai said.
“But the stacks are getting high and wobbly.”
“I didn’t see them,” I said. “Where--“
“They’re the same color as the cliff face,” the dwarf said. “Easy to miss unless you know what you’re looking for, because they’re nearly as tall as the cliffs too.”
“Would these blocks be useful for, say, building a road?”
“My lord—“ Nikolai warned.
“Oh aye,�
� the dwarf said, “But it’d have to be a long road for it to make a difference in the amount of stone we got. Even if’n we cobbled over the entirety of the land between the walls, we’d still be swimming in stone.”
“I was thinking about a road across our valley,” I said. “Join the two sides, and get a road going to between here and our entrance to the Emerald Sea.”
There was a moment of quiet, which was probably just my council taking the matter to heart. Thinking about what it might do for us to have access to the Emerald Sea.
“I flew over the land,” I said, “looking at our valley. It is big, and full of useful things. I think it’s time we started laying claim to it before someone else does.”
“I like it,” the dwarf chief said.
“It would be useful to gain access to more farmland when the spring comes,” Timurlane the Lifeweaver and current head farmer, said. “I am confident we can feed ourselves this winter, but if we continue to grow, we will need to expand.”
“It seems ambitious,” Wian said. “Maybe not the best use of our time and energy. And, your grace, if you permit, I would like to take a team after the princess.”
There were definitely a few sighs around the table, making me think this wasn’t the first time such an ask had been made.
“Do it,” I said “But know this is not something I’m keen on. She chose to leave. I will likely prefer to respect that choice, should it come to it.”
Wian frowned, but nodded. He pushed back from the table, leaving his plate, and headed out.
“That was fast,” I said.
“He’s been chomping at the bit for a while now,” Nathalie said.
“Fantastic,” I said. “Let’s move back to the road.”
“The road is not a valuable use of time or resources,” Nikolai said.
Lee shook his head.
“You can just say you disagree,” Nikolai interjected. “Your passive aggressive—“
“I’m not disagreeing,” Lee said. “I’m thinking. And I’m thinking of how foolish we would be to cede the rest of the valley to, well, to anyone who chooses to come and get it. If the duke is worried about that, then I take it there’s an opening to our valley? From somewhere else?”
I explained the general layout of the valley. The circle, the weird rock in the middle, the two lakes, and all the rest. And I made sure to let everyone know just how easy it was to get into our valley from the north. And, for good measure, I pointed out that the Dark Queen of Mahrduhm was building a road in our direction.
“You neglected to mention that aspect when we spoke,” Nikolai said.
“Does that change your opinion of the whole road thing?” I asked.
“Of course,” he snapped. “The things I have heard about that woman make me very afraid.”
“What have you heard?” Tarryn asked. “We don’t really know anything about her, in Osterstadt.”
Eliza Northwoods leaned forward. “I can answer that,” she said. “If you do not mind, Nikolai.”
Nikolai gestured for her to continue.
“Mahrduhm and the Empire have shared a border for many years,” Eliza started, “but throughout our shared history, it has largely been an economic friendship. It just was not worth it for either side to attempt military action, not with the singular pass being the main point of contact. But a few years ago, there was a shake-up in the royal family. A new queen came seemingly out of nowhere, and rose to power. Since then, she has been on the warpath. As far as I know, she initially went east, and conquered Oscal, Chayland, Hacrauna, and Wechos. Obviously, she stopped at the border of Smoux Braria, but my father believes it likely the Dark Queen entered into a relationship with them.”
“Uh, why is it obvious?” I asked.
“Later,” Nikolai said. “Please continue, Lady Northwoods. This is more information than I have yet received.”
“I still have some connections in the capital,” she said.
“Speaking of,” I interrupted again, “where’s your father?”
“Headed back to the capital,” she said. “At the behest of Valamir Glaton.”
“Ah,” I said. And I left it at that. But the mere mention of Valamir made my hackles rise, and I wanted to rage. Instead, I poured my feelings into devouring my dinner.
“The Queen turned her sights south,” Eliza said, pointedly looking away from my rage eating. “She apparently steamrolled right over Chayland — it was a massacre. Some refugees claim the queen was killing whole towns. Though again, I think if we accept that Smoux Braria is involved, it was more likely the soldiers belonging to the Celestial Masters behind that. The Dark Queen drove her armies down all the way to the shores of the Wakakasing Sea, conquering Vogros on the way. There she rested. Or so we thought. It turns out that she left her army spread out in pieces to calm and control the lands behind her. This is, again, according to work done by my father, when the Dark Queen was headed north and brokering various deals with the tribes from the Laughing Woods.”
“Goblins?” I asked.
Eliza nodded. “And worse.”
“It is telling the allies she makes,” Nikolai said.
There were nods around the table.
“Then, after the winter, when the soldiering season resumed, she was ready. She pushed hard against Grünewald, and it was a particularly bloody affair on both sides, with battles lasting through the spring and summer. Finally, the capital fell as the first snows fell. Or so the stories go. That meant, after two years, Mahrduhm finally shared a border with the Empire. Granted, the bulk of that border was the Kingkiller Highlands, but—“
“The Rutter Flats,” Nikolai said.
“Right.”
“This is where I know more of what has gone on,” Nikolai said. “We have three legions sitting along the flats, and Mahrduhm has yet to cross the border there.”
“But Rumib Pass,” I said. “She—“
“She chose to attack there instead,” Nikolai said. “She threw away thousands of lives there, but she hasn’t pushed us back. And she won’t. But perhaps the queen isn’t tenacious. Perhaps she is making sure we are looking the other way.”
“The other way from where?” I asked.
“From wherever she’s building that road to,” Eliza answered. “Likely here. She’s looking for another way over the mountains. Or around them.”
“And she’ll find those here,” I said.
There were some ashen looks around the table, as well as a few mutterings.
“So,” Nikolai said, “I think it is time for us to talk about building a road and a fort at the other end of the valley.”
Chapter Thirty-One
After the meeting, I headed to take a shower, something I’d been looking forward to for quite some time. But there was a new obstacle between the public area and my private quarters. A barracks had been set up, and it was full of soldiers.
The group was largely made up of the minotaur mercenaries. Apparently it was their idea to set up a sort of honor guard for me. I guess they’d developed an affection for me I hadn’t anticipated.
“Hello,” I said, looking at the two minotaurs in plate armor with huge axes. They were standing on either side of my door.
“Your grace,” the one on the left said. “Welcome home.”
“Can I, I mean, can I go inside?”
“Yes, your grace,” the minotaur said, as he opened the door for me.
I stepped inside, shut the door, and sighed. It’d been one hell of a day, and I was really glad to be home. All the clothes went off and were tossed into a pile, my unfillable knapsack got an honored spot on my nightstand, and then I got into my mystical shower and turned it on. It was glorious.
That is all.
Chapter Thirty-Two
The road project got underway immediately.
And by got underway, I mean it got bogged down by people arguing about what we should be doing and how we should be doing it, instead of anything actually getting built. Ahh, the jo
ys of working with a committee.
I let the group get to arguing, and instead, I went and found Skeld.
The healers had set up a hospital of sorts on the first floor of the mountain home, not far from the entrance. Which made sense — if there was a medical emergency outside, it would be a very short trip to get patients to the hospital.
It wasn’t a huge or technically advanced place, it was just a clean room that was well-lit with plenty of comfortable beds and healers who watched over their patients. On occasion, they mixed potions or tonics at the work benches on the far side of the room. That alone made it very different from any idea I had about medicine, because potions and magic were kind of the primary mode of the medicine industry here.
Skeld had a bed near the door. He still looked like shit.
He was alone, reading a book.
I stood in the doorway for a moment.
“Can I help you, my lord?” a woman asked.
One of the healers, whose name I couldn’t recall, but she had a pleasant sense about her. She reminded me of the really nice nurse at my elementary school. I didn’t want to ask her her name, but, well--
“I’m wondering about my friend here,” I said. “What’s wrong with him? Why is he not getting better?”
“His wounds are different than any I have yet seen,” she said. “He has a sickness or a poison of a new variety. Something which does not seem to respond to any of the methods of healing I have been taught. Do you know what did this to him?”
“I do.”
“Tell me,” she said, her face excited. “It might just be that I haven’t thought of the appropriate poultice or—“
“It was a beast from another, uh, dimension. Or world.”
“Ah.” Her face fell as she looked over at Skeld. Who was now looking at us. We hadn’t exactly been quiet, and the hospital wasn’t exactly huge, so it was safe to say he’d overheard everything. “We are doing what we can for him, but it doesn’t seem to be stopping whatever is wrong with him. I cannot tell if he is getting worse, either. I’m sorry that I don’t have a good answer for you.”