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    With my offering complete, and Adelay’s blessing on my current situation, waiting until the end of the week wasn’t difficult. I felt as if I could see every possibility as my scheme played out, and I knew that I would get away with everything I needed to. It was with this same confidence that I strolled through the palace gates onto the main road. The dwarven smith that I often acquired my items from for enchanting was on the far side of town, so This trip was likely to take all day, especially if he was behind on my supply. Unfortunately, he often was.

    As I walked down the main road, I noticed many of the peasants seemed to scramble to get out of my way. I glanced at the blue robe that I had chosen for the trip and wondered if it was simply too regal for my trip. I was getting too used to my nice things.

    The dwarf’s workshop was harder to find than one might think a businessman such as himself might wish it to be. I wasn’t fond of working with dwarves, but the only person I had been able to find that could supply the items I needed and keep their mouth shut was this smith. There wasn’t much chance that I was going to be getting back to the castle before nightfall. Jermaine or Kara might get suspicious if I was gone in the morning, but I had closed the shop for the day. Jermaine might think I was trying to avoid him, which I most definitely was, and bring it up later. 

If Kara thought something was wrong, she would likely call several guards to search for me, may Valesentia bless her young soul. I couldn’t have them finding me with a sack of crafted goods that I would be selling later. My only consolation was that her cousin was in town so she was less likely to check in on my shop. Of course, there was also the banquet tonight that I had been invited to by Kara yesterday.

    I searched the hillside that formed one of the natural barriers of inner Glandarin for the cave entrance that I knew was there. The very subtle opening was just large enough for a small cart to roll it’s way into the small dwarven pocket of this human city. Despite the Northern Mountains being the home of the dwarves, one could easily find these little communities of dwarves across the world. The Savolin Peninsula’s underground was crawling with the race of dwarves.

    I entered the tunnel, though not without a glance behind me. I was getting the uneasy feeling that I was being followed, but still I didn’t see anyone. Maybe I was just getting paranoid with the ghoulish elf on my trail.

    The cave was not the stealthiest place to walk. My footsteps echoed through the tunnels and I no doubt could be heard anywhere in the cavern. Of course, I also couldn’t hear the ringing of dwarven hammers. My smith was slacking. I picked up my pace, hoping to get this over with as soon as I could. There was no way I was going to be caught in a dwarven cave.

    Most elves, even coast elves, have a general distaste for dwarves. I think it might be our natural tendency to settle either on a warm beach or high trees, as opposed to their caves and tunnels. I could hardly breath in this cavern, and I could still see sunlight. I resolved myself to traverse further, knowing I needed to get my supplies. I soon came to a familiar stone door in the cave, and I pushed one of the nearby stones. The door slide apart, admitting me to the dwarven workshop.

    The heat hit me like a wave from the ocean, yes, but it was the smell that truly made me stagger. Did dwarves simply not bathe? It was the smell of burning coal and beard hair, mixed with dwarf sweat and the odor of their clothing. I said a silent prayer to Adelay, hoping she would make this swift.

    “Dwarf!” I yelled as I entered the cavern. It was only a few feet taller than myself and was shallow in depth as dwarf homes went. Cut right into the stone on my left was a small hovel, from which a short, round man appeared.

    He welcomed me, though the bald fool would soon be cursing and blubbering for me to leave if he was behind schedule. I didn’t say anything, but rather pointed to my right where his open air forge lay idle. He waddled over to the forge and picked up his hammer.

    “It will be done in a moment, Milady.” I had told him to stop calling him that, but this dwarf didn’t exactly respond well to weakness. I had originally tried to bribe him, but he didn’t even accept enchanted weapons. I ended up having to channel the power of Adelay, letting her temporarily possess me to get him to start on my trinkets.

    “There’s a stack over there of the items that are finished,” he mumbled with a wave to the other side of the forge. I slid the completed products into my sack, though it didn’t grow any heavier thanks to my spacial enchantments. I did make a mental note that only about three quarters of what I had requested were present.

    “Where are the rest of them?” I hissed at him.

    “They are all close to finishing. Give me an hour to complete them, Milady.” His gruff voice didn’t fit the pleading manner in which he was begging me not to curse him, but that was little to punish him for. Of course, if he couldn’t complete it then that would be something to whip up a bit of Adelay’s power for.

    A sudden knock on the massive stone door echoed through the chamber.

    “Who is that?” I asked the dwarf. He shrugged and noted that anyone who knew where to find the tunnel knew where the rock to open the door was located. Perhaps I hadn’t been wrong to be so paranoid. I may not have been paranoid enough, evidently.

    “Keep working,” I told him, “You have one hour to finish the other three.” I approached the door, which had gone silent, and waited for a second knock. The change in the air was subtle. I wasn’t certain it was even there when I felt it. It felt as if the air suddenly started to buzz. If I wasn’t a skilled enchantress, I wouldn’t have known the flow of mana. This was a powerful presence on the other side of that door. The issue is that the presence had appeared out of nowhere.

    “How thick is this door?” I called over to the dwarf. He grumbled something about it being thick enough. He was wrong, of course. A silver flash shone from the center of the door, a blade cutting through the stone. I had heard of only one blade with that sort of capability. The door pulled apart and the surge of power disappeared. There stood the same green clad elf I had been trying to avoid the attention of for the past few days. Fenril Malorne had found me.

    He strode slowly forward, his blade sheathed again. In the dim light, I couldn’t make out his features well, especially with that wretched hat. I prefered to look my accusers in the eyes.

    “So this is where the magic happens?” he said calmly.

    “No, actually. This is where the crafting happens,” the dwarf grunted. Fenril glanced at him but seemed to not care that he was even present.

    “Keep working,” I told him. He grunted and complied. He clearly couldn’t feel the power from the figure before him. Even after he had sheathed his blade, I could still feel a light power coming from him.

    “Well, want to tell me why you have a second craftsman working under you? Why most of your work is poorly enchanted?” I searched for an explanation, but for once, I decided there was no reason to lie to this elf. He already knew for certain that I was lying.

    “Nothing to say, coast elf?” I still remained silent. “I will make you a deal.” I dreaded the idea of dealing with this high elf.

    “I won’t report your activities to the princess, or even the king, if you accept. You’ll even come out on top, possibly.” I was intrigued, so I tried to remove my bias.

    “First, you’ll owe me. One favor, to be redeemed later.” I didn’t like it, and I couldn’t imagine what he might want in the future, but I agreed anyhow.

    “Second, you will help me identify my most recent enchantment to Milin, and supply materials of power for the next enchantment.” I wanted to point out that materials used for enchanting were quite valuable, but I did realize something. If he put too many enchantments on that blade, it would likely backfire on him. Putting too much power into a single item is dangerous.

    “Alright, I’m good with that one,” I agreed.

    “And finally, you will give me a properly enchanted necklace for the princess.” This demand actually baffled me. I hadn’t expected him to care about the poorly enchanted necklace. It’s timer would be up tonight, so I would have likely been seeing the princess the next day or even late tonight if she went to bed early.

    “Fine,” I submitted. There wasn’t much chance of me getting away from a legendary hero.

    “Alright. I think your dwarf is almost done with those projects.”

    “What?” I said, “He said he needed an hour.” I turned to see the three remaining trinkets, a bracelet, a necklace, and earrings, finished and in the dwarf’s ready pile.

    “I said give me an hour,” he grumbled, “I only needed ten minutes…” He grumbled something about underappreciation while he practically rolled his way back to his little stone home.

    “Looks like you’re ready to go,” Fenril chuckled as I scooped the crafts into my bag.

    “Shut up, Malorne,” I scolded, “Just because you aren’t turning me in doesn’t make us friends.” I stomped back through the now broken door, something the dwarf would have to fix, no doubt. I didn’t really feel sorry for him.

    The trip back to the palace was actually a shorter one with Malorne at my back. I don’t want to be associated with him, so I had to make sure I stayed ahead. The only problem was the Fenril walks really fast. I felt like I was practically jogging at his walking pace. I stayed ahead either way. When we finally came to the palace, I pushed my way into one of the smaller side doors. It was mostly hidden, and opened into a stairwell that led down to the hallway just outside my shop.

    I stepped down the dark spiral stairs, listening to the sound of my footsteps as they echoed down into the dim light. I stepped out into the hall with Fenril right behind me. His presence felt like I was being stalked by the undead. I crossed the hall and slipped into my shop, going to empty the bag into my supply.

    I turned to find Fenril hanging his hat on one of the welcoming pegs, and once again, my judgement of his visage quickly changed. He seemed more regal without the hat. What looked like a face depleted of life before, seemed more like a regal, sharply cut jaw and cheeks. His eyes seemed brighter.

    “What is up with that hat? You always seem darker with it. Is it enchanted with some sort of disguising charm?” It seemed like a reasonable question, but after a second of silence, Fenril burst into laughter. I did not enjoy being laughed at.

    “What’s so funny?” I asked him.

    “Oh,” He said between gasped breaths, “There’s no enchantment on the hat, but it is supposed to mask my identity.” He stopped laughing for a second, clearly amused by the idea that I thought it was enchanted.

    “You know, sometimes the simplest solutions are the easiest. Just by giving my face more shadow, it disguises me.” I was pretty sure I understood.

    “Theo actually had the same question,” he noted. I wondered when the high elf started referring to the princess by her first name.

    “Well, it makes sense. You do specialize in enchantments, don’t you? I hear your sword has a vast many enchantments on it.”

    “That it does,” seemingly calmed down.

    “Just how many? I imagine even the most powerful mages could only manage six or seven with a masterfully crafted focus.”

    “Milin presently has twenty enchantments.” He said it so casually that I didn’t believe him at first. Then I realized he wasn’t joking in any way. I had heard him laugh, but he didn’t seem like one to make a joke of this manner.

    “Twenty?”

    “Though I only know the effects of the first nineteen. That is why I asked you if you could appraise her.”

    “Her? Of course your sword is a her.” Ugh… Men. Always assuming anything they owned as a her.

    “Well I didn’t choose it,” he said, as though it defended him from guilt. “She named herself.”

    “Your sword named itself?”

    “Of course it did. It has its own identity. That’s number fifteen..”

    “You enchanted your sword with an identity?” I asked. It sounded ludicrous in my mind, but out loud it actually made a small amount of sense. If he was strong enough to enchant it with twenty enchantments, a personality didn’t seem that far-fetched.

    “I guess that would make sense…” I didn’t really care to hear the elf’s whole spiel about his past and his sword, so I decided to change the subject.

    “You know, your demands are going to cost me a lot of profit.” He nodded, then considered something. He seemed to gaze around the room at the chairs and tables, even his own hat. He finally said something.

    “You could reopen the tavern.” He said it as though it was a logical solution, and after a moment of thought, I realized it actually was. I had everything I needed to start a tavern in my shop, so I would be making a profit immediately. I already owned the space, or at least was renting it. Still I hesitated to give myself more work. I wouldn’t be able to…

    “But that wouldn’t give me any time to visit the dwarf!” I said in realization.

    “I might have considered that.” Was he trying something?

    “Well I think it’s a wonderful idea,” a voice at the door said, “I’d love a mug of ale when I come to visit.”

    “Jermaine, how long have you been listening at the door?”

    “Just arrived,” he said proudly, “But if you are going to make a tavern, you need a name!”

    “Jermaine, I don’t care,” I said, realizing I was being a little harsh to him. “Sorry, that was rude of me.”

    “Well, neither is throwing hammers,” he said with a smirk. This earned a raised eyebrow and a stare from Fenril.

    “Nevermind that right now, why are you even here, Jermaine?”

    “Yes, right. I came for two reasons. The first was to check on my focus. How’s it coming along?”

    “Harder than I thought,” I admitted. Enchanting was my specialty, not focus crafting.

    “A reasonable answer. The second was to see if I could escort you to the royal banquet soon.” With this question, Fenril tensed and started moving for the door. What was up with that elf? He snagged his hat off the peg as he walked out the room. Not even a farewell.

    “Where’s he going?” Jermaine asked.

    “No clue, but I do have a guess or two. Most likely it has something to do with a princess.”

    “Well then, your answer?” he asked. I sighed and finally gave in, knowing it might stop him from pestering me for a while.

    “Fine, when do we leave?” Jermaine was practically jumping with joy already.

    “Oh, just a few minutes,” He said, though he was now distracted with some other thought.

“The Crafter’s Tap!” he suddenly burst out.

“What?”

“The Crafter’s Tap, that’s what you should call the tavern.” It actually sounded kind of enticing, and it implied that I also did crafting jobs. Jermaine seemed to be smarter than he appeared at first.

“We’ll see about this whole tavern business,” I told him, “I’m still not sure about it.” I cleaned my hands of the dirt from the dwarven cave, then went to the door with Jermaine. He offered me an arm, but I didn’t take it. I simply pushed my way out of the door.

The walk to the dining hall was a quiet one. There wasn’t much to discuss. The torchlit halls gave the walk a certain aesthetic that I wasn’t certain I liked. There were too many shadows. As a follower of Adelay, I hated shadows. They made it hard to see.

We finally reached the door at the same time as what looked like a couple at first. It seemed to be a white haired elf lord robed in green, Princess Theo hooking her arm within his. I certainly didn’t recognize Fenril Malorne without his hat yet.

“Greetings, Princess,” Jermaine said with a bow. I greeted her in a similar manner. “Shall we enter together?” He reached for the door and pulled it open. Inside was not at all what they expected to find at a royal banquet.

The table was set for dinner, and many aristocrats from Borea, Notosin, and Agrisolis, along with the king sat around the table. The rest of the room was something of a blur. A young man in a black vest, white shirt, and white cape was ordering guards to several different areas of Glandarin. Beside him was a young woman from Notosin, if her tanned skin was any indicator. She put a hand on his shoulder as he clenched his fists. He looked as though he was going to lash out, but her touch seemed to relax him.

“What’s going on here?” Theo demanded.

“The princess is missing. Her cousin believes she is being held by her aunt,” a passing guard informed them all. Fenril’s face dropped at this new, and he almost matched his ghoulish look just from the frown.

“Well, I assume we are searching for her,” Jermaine commented as we approached the young man giving directions.

“Toruk!” he suddenly swore as he glanced around the room. It wasn’t often that people swore in the ancient tongue, especially humans. I knew exactly what it meant, but only because the ancient language was the speech of magic. “We’re out of guards.”

“Out of guards?” I asked when we were before him. He looked up finally and glanced at our motley crew.

“My cousin is somewhere in the city, but there were only enough guards to search for my mother in all but three districts.” Princess Theo did a quick count of the people present.

“I’ll search one of the districts,” she offered. The thought had actually occurred to me as well.

“We’ll pair off. I’m sure the enchantress and mage would be happy to help as well,” Fenril volunteered. I was a little annoyed that he spoke for me, but he was right.

“Then that leaves one more district,” The black and white haired boy noted. “I will take that one.”

“Wait,” said the princess that had been here with the young man, “You need a partner. I’ll go with you.” The boy seemed to hesitate for a second, then finally seemed to give in to his own mental argument.

“Alright, but first names. I’m Brenson Hylion.”

    “You all know I’m Theo, but this is Fenril, Robin, and Jermaine,” the princess said.

    “And I’m Princess Rin,” the other princess added.

    “Great, now let’s find my cousin,” Brenson finished. The group split in three directions, and we went on a princess search.

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