“People often said that effort and hard work mattered the most in life, but that is not necessarily true. More often than not, knowing the right person, or being at the right place at the right moment, might well carry one much further along than just hard work. The world’s unfair that way, at times, and it’s up to you to make up for that unfairness in your own ways.” - From a lecture by Garth Wainwrought, Dean of the Levain Institute for Higher Learning, circa 693 FP.
“If the good Mæster and his companions would deem to wait here for a moment, we will inform the Graf of your visit. He is bound to be joyful at the news of your unexpected coming,” said the steward of the Graf’s house as he showed Aideen and the rest of the visiting group – which was all of them – to a comfortably but not lavishly furnished waiting room.
Much like most other things in Knallzog, the local Graf seemed to favor a more subdued sense of fashion, even if he was likely rich enough to literally lacquer his entire manor in gold. The position of a Graf was equivalent to that of a Duke in the Clangeddin Empire further north, or a Gertsog in the Elmaiya Empire, generally considered one of the highest noble ranks, just a step or two below royalty itself. There were only three people with such a rank in Knallzog, of whom the late Ginnie used to be one.
While the servants in the Graf’s manor was dressed in clothing that was clearly tailor-made and cut to fit them, the clothes were still made out of humble blue linen fabric, which was one of the better sorts of linen in Alcidea, though remaining an affordable one. The sky-blue hue of the fabric reminded Aideen of the difference between the two continents, since there weren’t many things in Ur-Teros that could produce a vibrant blue hue, and as a result dyes of that color became a luxury there.
In Alcidea, a light-blue vibrant hue was one of the most common dyes available, since the flowers of the flax grown to process into linen happened to be of that shade. In turn, however, purple dyes – especially darker ones – were rare and expensive in the northern continent, typically reserved for royalty and the like, whereas in Ur-Teros it was one of the most common hues, especially in the Lichdom.
When the clergy of Tohrmut, the Deity of Death, chose black and purple as their colors, one of their main considerations was the prevalence of purple hues in the land they were in, after all.
The sudden visit to the Graf’s manor proceeded far more smoothly than Aideen expected, with the staff clearly familiar with Engel by sight. They directly greeted him warmly and ushered them to the waiting room without even any indication of unrest, which boded well. That the waiting room in question was well-stocked with refreshments was another good sign.
Of course, the mansion being a dwarf’s home, most of the refreshments were strongly alcoholic in nature, which made Rhys turn rather pale. He was still nursing a bit of a hangover from the previous night’s drinking, though he sighed in relief when one of the servants that attended them offered him some hot, strongly brewed tea instead.
The tea was laced with a drop of flavorful liquor for taste, aroma, and a bit of a kick, but at least that was still well within his tolerance.
On the other hand, the others weren’t shy and directly sampled the myriad kinds of ales, meads, and liquors on offer, often commenting on their flavor as if they were connoisseurs of alcoholic drinks. That seemed to please the servants greatly, though, as they seemed to take pride in their master’s collection of drinks on offer.
Other than various drinks there were also all sorts of finger foods and snacks on offer, ranging from crunchy pastries that tasted of smoke and were lightly salted, several sorts of chewy dried seafoods, as well as some more common ones like nuts and dried fruits. It did not escape Aideen’s notice that most of the snacks were of the sort one would enjoy while drinking, though.
The group waited for the better part of an hour before they were informed that the Graf would meet them. The wait was not unexpected, since they had arrived without prior notice and it was likely that the Graf still had work that he had to deal with before he could make time to meet with them after all, so none of them complained about it as the steward from earlier led them to another, larger meeting room.
“Mæster Goerenbrandt! A pleasure to see you again! What fair wind blew your sail to my port once more, pray tell!” said a middle-aged dwarven man of dark complexion typical of Knallzog dwarves in a booming voice as they entered the room. The man spread his arms wide and enveloped Engel in a passionate hug, which the healer returned in kind.
“Fair winds to you too, Graf McBaine,” replied Engel with a smile after they separated themselves from the embrace. “This time around I came to ask for a favor, not for myself, but for my benefactor who had taught me much when I was still a youngster long ago,” he said openly to the dwarven noble.
“Oh? A benefactor of yours, you say? Please introduce us, someone a healer of your caliber considered a benefactor must be worth knowing!” stated the dwarven noble, Graf Lloyd McBaine von Meergant himself, with a wide smile on his face. “Pray tell, which one of them is it?”
“Of course, I should introduce you two,” said Engel as he beckoned for Aideen to step forward. She did so without any qualms. “Milady, this is Graf Lloyd McBaine von Meergant, ruler of this city and its vicinity, and the man you would need to talk to for your matter,” he said. “Graf McBaine, this is Milady Aideen deVreys from the Lichdom of Ptolodecca. You might know her better as the First Unliving… or as the Maiden in Silver.”
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umbrellluck· Apr 23, 2024
