M.D.Syl
patreon
Chapter 125 colorless
🕑 Added 2023-12-18 13:35:59 +0000 UTCChapter 125 Friends or Innocents, Choose Now!
There can be no justice when there’s emotion.
There can be no knowledge when there are no questions.
There can be no truth when there are assumptions.
There can be no existence without a soul.
And every soul matters.
Noxi, guardian of light.
It doesn’t take too long to figure an answer once I know what to look for. The Lesser Cure Disease Potion doesn't look too complicated to brew compared to glitter. The book mentions over and over that it'll only help against natural and low grade magical diseases.
A drop of blood from the alchemist.
Lavender.
Poppy.
Tiger Claw/Predatory land animal's claw.
Honey.
Vinegar.
I pass by the kitchen to get the ingredients, and I'm also looking for my spymaster. "Excuse me?" I ask a young freckled maid who bows too low. "Do you know where Marasi is? I can't find him anywhere."
She fidgets, clenching the cloth of her dark gray skirts. "He... he left, Your Majesty. Had other business outta town, he did."
"When did he leave exactly?"
"Before the riots began, Your Majesty."
"I see... Thank you." It's like he knew exactly when to leave... "Do you know how the riots began?"
She shakes her head with a wince. "No, Your Majesty."
"Very well. You're dismissed, thank you." I wonder if he serves another master, I should've known better...
Helpless and detached I head back to the garden to get a few poppy flowers and restock on casting material.
The old man is still sleeping under the shade of a tree, with his funny black hat covering his face. "Tiom?" I ask.
He scrambles up, pulling his hat off his face. "Hm? Oh it's you, young lady. Have you gotten your orcs under control yet?"
I shake my head. This old man is unnerving... combined with the fact that Marasi just gave me false information and escaped, I really shouldn't just trust these people... the palace's staff did serve Luard with the same dedication they serve me and that says a lot... Then again, Jolla and Tasyia have been nothing but helpful... "I'm here to get some lavender and roses, also poppies if you have them? What actually happened in the city while I wasn't here?" He knows more than he pretends to... might as well make some use of it.
The old man gets up slowly and limps to the nearby rose bush, taking out his pruner. "A man by the name of Moriz attacked an orc. The orc retaliated as orcs do when challenged by those they deem weak and enslaved the man. The man's friend lodged a complaint with the Knight Paladin of Noxi by the name of Kolag. The paladin of Noxi couldn't stand by, it is against his god's creed you see. He slaughtered the orc responsible and seven additional orcs who attempted to kill him. The act had brought a retaliation by the orcish tribe, they raided the city and enslaved its populace as orcs often do. We were spared because the orcs deemed the palace's staff as your slaves, young lady, and they cannot touch the slaves of their shaman. Ah, poppies, let me get you some."
Right... I feel like an idiot... I should've taken Kolag with me to avoid this kind of mess... Damn it to the rotten hells! Can't the bloody idiotic bucket head keeps the peace for a single rotten month without starting a civil war in the name of his snaking god?! "Any advice?"
The old man stops pruning red flower petals and stands tall, his pair of brown eyes looking directly into my own. "Orcs have grabby paws, they won't let go once they decided they own a slave. Gather them up, pretend to accept the new reality. Make an excuse for a party, get them all drunk, and slit their throats."
Ok... good to know he has such a ruthless crude side to him... I'll have him watched... "And if I want to keep them under me?"
He turns back to the flowers. "You'll have to let them keep their slaves, if you can stomach such a thing. Luckily, Olfgram Gemhand has avoided the whole debacle by taking his family on another vacation... right before the riots happen. Hm, yes. Auspicious, is it not?"
Olfgram Gemhand again... "Tiom. If you have any grievances with Olfgram, I suggest you air them."
He cuts a few red poppy petals and hand them to me. "No grievances. The Gemhand family is far and wide on the Gray Isles, making an enemy of them is not something I desire..."
I fold my hands on my chest. "But they made an enemy of you I assume."
He nods curtly, speaking in a low voice. "Kings and Queens rise and fall on the Gray Isles, but the Gemhands stay. I do not trust you to protect me or those I care for, young lady, but I'll say this: Be very careful when dealing with a Gemhand."
I fold my hands "If you can prove to me that he caused any of that, I'll take him out despite his family connections."
He turns to his flowers. "Hrmpf. No. I will not go that far. I have pointed you in the right direction, young lady. Do with that what you will. Now, I believe you have a disease to cure, go brew that potion before your pet orcs start to bleed again."
I shake my head. I'll need someone to keep an eye on him, and the Gemhands... And Marasi is gone... He was never reliable to begin with... Why the hell did I trust him?! I'm such an idiot! I'm letting Sharla handle spymaster position from today onward... I can’t afford to chase after marasi, I have to take care of this crisis. And first, I have to cure this damned disease!
I head to the alchemy lab, fill the cauldron anxiously, and follow the instructions the hag left in the recipe. Although I fail for the first time, the second attempt is successful. After brewing three more, I meet with the poor trio of orcs who finally get out of the library, and hand them each a potion. "Here. This should cure the disease," I say, trying not to touch my itching throat.
The three gulp the potions and the effects are rather quick. Agilla and Shufa are so happy that they begin a brawl on the spot. Toppling one another to the ground in something between a violent struggle and an odd mating ritual.
"You need to rest!" I call at the two who ignore me.
"Thank you... Inara," Balgrum says slowly as if saying the words pains him.
"You're welcome. I assume you'll free the people of this city from your men now? I'd rather avoid any further bloodshed." Every dead soul is one less under my command, and I was so close to ten thousands... rotten bucket head had to ruin it all!!!
"You have my word," Balgrum swears with a light bow in my direction, ignoring the pair of female orcs behind him who punch one another on the ground.
No. This isn't about my assignment from the hag. These people are more than numbers or pawns, these are people with lives, lives that got taken away from them... I know how that feels like... "Good! I'm going to need more than a word, I need my people back in the city. We also need to fix some shipments of food to Apricot City and get some of your men to scout Pear City for me. I guess we should take care of one crisis at a time."
Balgrum growls in agreement.
*
An hour later we make our way to the orcs’ camp. Balgrum, Agilla, Jerro, sharla, and Jolla join my entourage. We enter the orcs’ camp and get greeted by looks from hundreds of orcs and even a higher number of human ‘sheep’. Some of the humans are tied in together, others are led around by other slaves, being taught how to take care of menial tasks around the camp.
I pass by a small group of naked women who are being forced to run through patch covered in sharp bones and rocks. When one of them slows down, the orc who follows them behind whips her violently. On the other end a tall orc slaps a young teenaged boy for mixing something wrong, seemingly their alcohol distillation.
The sea of tents stretches around us, bordered by the tall wooden wall behind it. I can hear the cries from around the camp, though many of the slaves are surprisingly being led into the clearing to watch our proceedings.
The orcs gather around when we reach the center of the camp. In the middle of the camp near the large—currently dim—bonfire. Bones and skulls pool around the crackling firepit, as if the orcs took the word "bonefire" in the literal sense.
Elder Gorlor is here, and Kolag kneels near him with his hands tied behind his back. “Let him go!” I demand right away.
To my surprise, Gorlor doesn’t argue. He cuts the rope around Kolag’s wrists and pats his metallic shoulder.
Kolag gets up and walks toward me with a heavy step. “I rotted this… this is all my fault…” His echoing voice is fragile, hurt, close to crying. “I caused this… I’m a monster…”
You bet it’s your fault! I’ve worked so hard on getting all these people under my banner, and you get them into a damn civil war?! I trusted you! I trusted you’d keep my city safe! You stupid self-righteous bucket head!
I take a deep breath and heave a sigh, holding my rage in. This isn’t the time to lose my temper. He punished himself enough with his own guilt… Besides… I only have Tiom's account of what happened, he could be wrong… “Maybe you have.” I reply in Toml’a “But we’re human beings, we aren’t perfect, we make mistakes. You can make mistakes, I can make mistakes, we all make mistakes, and some of them can cost people their lives. It doesn’t make you a monster…”
I repeat the same words I’ve said when we first met. The more I talk, the more what I preach sounds right. Yes, he made a mistake. Yes, it ruined my plans. Yes, I have every right to take it out on him. But what good will it do? How will it make things better from this point onward? “…Learn from this and get better for the next time, Kolag. And please, stop hating yourself, it doesn’t get you anywhere. Let’s talk about this later, ok?”
Kolag nods quietly, I can’t tell what he’s thinking. I hope he stopped hating himself at least. If there is anything I truly dislike about him, is the amount of guilt he carries around, the impossible standards he expects from himself and everyone else to uphold. But as much as I want to, I can’t change him, you can’t change people…
I raise my voice for the rest of the orcs to hear clearly and switch back to Sinteo. “For now, tell me what happened here.”
Kolag is the one to reply. “A human encountered an orc urinating on his son’s burial tree. The human attacked the orc and the orc forcefully took the human as his slave. I rushed to that orc when I heard about it, I’ve tried to reach an agreement, but the orc kept mocking our sacred traditions. I’ve lost my temper and killed the orc and his friends… in response, the orcs have sacked the city. As I’ve said, I’m the one responsible…”
I shake my head. What was I expecting? At least Tiom wasn't far off... I take my seat near Balgrum in his chieftain chair. Agilla stands behind him like a loyal hound. Jerro, Sharla, and Jolla stand behind me in the same manner. “Gorlor? I’d like to hear your end of the story…”
The elderly orc holds onto his walking staff with both hands. His hairy spider crawls across the wooden surface. “Not much to add shaman. Your mate is honorable, and his description is most accurate.”
I lean forward angrily. “Why attack the city? My city! Why not attack Kolag? Isn’t he the person who committed the murder?”
“He’s the head of the dog pack, the Chief of the human tribe,” Gorlor explains.
I get up to my feet. “No, he’s not. I am!”
“You are shaman,” the old man insists.
“For the humans I’m grand chieftess, both the shaman and the chief! Why should Kolag’s deeds affect all the humans in the city? You did not attack the palace. The humans there are my sheep right? How is it different from the humans in the city?! The human in that city are all my sheep. They are not yours to take! Return them at once!”
This seem to baffle him for a long moment.
“They are not sheep if they serve themselves." The annoying reply comes from Balgrum. "And you left Kolag in command. That makes him chief.”
I sit down with a huff, he has a point. With the way orcs see authority, both the chief and the shaman are responsible for the tribe’s action, their actions reflect on the tribe itself. It’s a good cause for war according to their culture, at least according to the culture and linguistics lessons I’ve received from Balgrum on the way to Apricot City.
I still can’t let them enslave eighty percent of my population! I should’ve left Salik behind and taken Kolag with me… That was impossible, Salik needed glitter potions… I hope Balgrum will keep his word and release these people and we can get over it without any further bloodshed…
“Don’t!” Jerro whispers in my ear before I open my mouth again. “Instead of releasing the humans, you can enslave them. If you march the orcs to the next cities, raid them, enslave the population, more orcish tribes will gather under your banner and you’ll become an idol of war to them. You’ll achieve your goals easily, you’ll have over fifty thousand souls under your command, and your master will be impressed. The chances of failure are slim. Please! Do as I ask for once! Inara, Sharla is going to die if you don’t listen to me! I’m going to die… even Kolag might die. Please listen to me! Please!” Jerro begs me with a pleading tone.
I can’t let Sharla and Jerro die… not for my morals, it’d be like Lezere all over again… But these are hundreds of people! Enslaving them just to save my friends’ lives?! Jerro has a point… I need ten thousand souls under me, they can be slaves… it’s not like I’m going to change the world by being a benevolent queen… it’s not like these people even like me, they just worship me as a part of their twisted religion. I’m here for two years, and then I’m going to leave… I can become the shaman and lead an army of orcish tribes instead of mudding my way through ruling these damned human cities…
What about Kolag? He won’t like it… Maybe, but considering this whole situation is his fault to begin with, he won’t say a thing! But he won’t love me as much… besides… Snake what Kolag thinks! How will I be able to sleep at night? I can't do this to hundreds of people!
Easy, there are slaves everywhere around the world, only the church of Noxi opposes it… I don’t believe in Noxi, and just because I have experience as a slave doesn’t mean I should join the church of Noxi and oppose it too…
That part of my life is over, it’s time to let go of my past… I’m not a slave anymore, I’m no longer helpless, and some people in the world are less fortunate… I'm a slave to my ambitions if I let this happen! A slave to the hag, a slave to the orcs and their horrid culture, and a slave of the great "what if". I refuse to be a slave!
No. I'm no longer a slave. I made my way up with sweat and blood, but I still answer to the hag… I can’t help everyone, I can’t save everyone… If it’s simple to help, I will, but if I have to choose between me and my friends or these strangers, I choose me and my friends!
What about these hundreds of people?! I look at the slaves who gather around, eyeing the orcish gathering with eyes full of fear.
What about them? They are nothing more than pawns. Are they more important to me than Jerro and Sharla? I’m not willing to risk Jerro and Sharla like this. I can’t let them die. I cherish them both! I look back at Jerro and Sharla behind me. I can see the fear in Sharla’s eyes, she believes every word Jerro said. But it’s nothing compared to the terror on Jerro’s face. His normally lidded eyes are open wide, and his nostrils widen with each breath. This man knows for a fact that his death is near.
Ugh…
*~*~*
Interlude 125.1
Ryon
Ryon leaves the thug's camp.
He sabotaged another order of that stupid little bitch who likes to play an old cackling witch.
If only the one holding his leash never ordered him to commit to the witch's wish.
By salts and cinder he'll be free, once he finds a way the crown cannot forsee.
The humming gem that the old witch gave him hums on his thigh and disrupts his rhyme and rhythm. He touches the gem and activate the little trick. "Ya?"
"You got the bandit's to free Janara as I've asked, yes?" The old witch's voice asks in his ear, confirming what she already thinks she knows.
"Nah... bandits wanna go their way. can you gimmie a magic trick now?" He's got to keep up the street boy act, you never knows when someone's watching, when someone might be listening. He's fine if his connection to the old witch is exposed, it's not the person who truly holds his leash.
"I shall assume you have a reason for this failure, yes?"
"Nah. No reason. They didn't wanna. Too much trouble."
"Then no magic trick for you, thief." The device's mana stops flowing.
Ryon shrugs and hops ahead toward Apricot City. He has more than one horse in this race, and as a gambling man he gambled on all sides. The unfolding events can only benefits him. The chaos that will soon ensue is a chance to finally rip off his leash, and hopefully the hand holding it along with it.
But none of it will happen if little Marisha dies, and the stupid witch had been pushing a life threatening trial after another at the poor girl. If he can dance the tight rope between his real orders and the witch's orders by sticking to their very letter, he can give more chance to the little cub.
*~*~*
Power level: 3rd stage apprentice.
Mana pools status:
Crown-knot: Affinity 10: connected: 1 gem replenished per minute.
Neck-Bridge: Affinity 6: formed: max amount of gems drained per day: 85
Abdomen-storage: Affinity 5: formed: 21 neutral gems. Conversion ratio: elemental : neutral 6:1, neutral : elemental 1:1
Air: Affinity 4: formed: 30 gems
Fire: Affinity 2: formed: 15 gems
Light: Affinity 3: formed: 22/23 gems
Water: Affinity 6: connected: 69 gems
Earth: Affinity 1: formed: 7 gems
Wood: Affinity 2: formed: 15 gems
Gravity: Affinity 9: connected: 93/104 gems
Cantrip known:
Air: Shavi’s Breeze, Shavi’s Sword. Shavi’s Hair Dryer, Aria’s Enhanced Hearing. Aria’s Sonic Scream. Aria's Increased Voice.
Fire: Nuriss’ Flame. Effrat’s Firefly, Effrat’s Fire Breath. Sorladika's Lesser Heating. Nuriss’ Ignite. Oniga's Soap Creation.
Light: Noxi’s Light. Lako’s Blinding Light. Rika’s energy hand.
Water: Water Evocation, Water to Ice, Ice to Water, Water to Vapor, Vapor to Water, Mayan’s Icy Spike, Ayla’s Water Jet. Ayla’s instant freeze. Ayla's Flowing Shield. Ayla’s Freezing Vapors. Hot Water Conjuration. Boiling Waterjet.
Earth: Alice’s Oil Summoning, Reiko’s Acid Spray. Alf's Copper Bolt
Wood: Arigor’s Lesser Vines. Kolosu’s Vegetable Summoning.
Gravity: Lumina’s Kinetic Burstm. Tukado’s Repulse. Tukado’s Lesser Shield IIa. Imari’s Minor Telekinesism. Imari’s Jump. Leo’s Pull. Leo’s Grounding. Alino’s Light Body. Alino’s Heavy Body. Alino's Orbiter.
Transmutation: Oniga's Laundry.
Spells known:
Light: Rika's Electric Channelb1
Gravity: Alino’s Weightless Bodyb1x2. Tukado's Pushb1x3. Tukado’s defense IIIb1x4. Imari’s Lesser Flightb2.
Life: Brigit’s Lesser Cure Poison. Brigit’s Skin Restoration.
Focus capability: 18 patterns.
Social status: The Queen of Red Cedar City. Shaman of the Twin Moon Tribe. Inara, Daughter of Mysteries. Apprentice to the Maven of Mysteries. Sorceress.
Personal Wealth: 1465 Magic Gems. 1420 Golden Peas, 45 Silver Scales, 32 Copper Bits.
Personal Items:
Magical necklace. Contains 100 gems of general mana, can be drained like a mana pool. It’ll recharge by itself at the rate of five gems an hour.
1 potion of lightning body.
1 potion of mana, medium grade.
2 potions of Lesser Healing.
2 potions of Pain Tolerance.
An enchanted belt with eight pouches, the enchantment keeps the pouches’ content fresh. Each pouch may contain 10g of petals or six potion flasks.
50g Rose petals.
20g Lavender petals.
10 empty soul bottles. Glass with a diamond stopper, put in scaled leather wrapping.
The Great White Egret grimoire. Dedicated by the Maven of mysteries to Inara. 30/100. Locked.
Present Companions:
Sharlafyn Nettledew
Jerro
Kolag
Languages:
Toml’a <People’s tongue> Fluent
Sinteo <Speech> Fluent
Myrsha <Gravity> 8/10
Felul <Wind> 1/10
Nim <Water> 1/10
A'arkalu <Wolf Tongue> 3/10
Injuries and scars:
Curses: unknown extracted parasite, possibly bloodline related.
-
Kingdom’s treasury: 3836 gold coins. 123 magical gems.
Kingdom’s citizen: Red Cedar City: 3,881 humans, 1,836 human children.???
Apricot City: approximate 800+ humans.
Twin Moon Tribe: 1,138 orcs. 293 orc children. 529 sheep-slaves.
Kingdom's army: 1,136 Orc Warriors. 40 foot man 284 Footmen ???. 49 Peacekeeper Knights ???. 500 Blood Spears.
Notables at Court:
Tasiya Keyholder.
Jolla SilverQuill.
Talbot Bookkeeper.
Old Gardner Tiom.
Balgrum Orc Chieftain.
Comments
M.D.Syl
Thank you very much! Fixed. <3
kirra labas
I think it should be Inara here instead of Marisha ["Thank you... Marisha." Balgrum says slowly, as if saying the words pains him.]
