Chapter 107

The inn Agnes had chosen for us was called The Golden Purse, a theme made obvious throughout the common room. I knew my grandaunt was wealthy, but beyond the carriage, I was yet to be given some perspective on exactly what that meant. Her choice of inn put any doubts I might have had to rest.

Opulent seating, two bars with clinking glasses, and formally dressed staff were the first things that stood out to me upon entering. The second were the glances directed at my mother and I. Even Meredith’s maid uniform was of a higher quality than the clothes we wore. While I thought Blake might warrant a few stares, the few people who looked at him seemed to mostly have eyes for the blade he wore openly on his hip before looking away quickly. I half expected Nazim to get more glances given he was the only beastkin I could see. Given that he appeared to be a warrior, the people throughout the room seemed to consider him a bodyguard and returned to their business.

Ignoring the sheer quality of the furnishings of the room and the people lazing about within, I still would have known that this was a place for the wealthy based on the lighting. Lanterns shone brightly, lighting up the room in a golden hue with not a sign of flickering flame among them. Instead, I could sense aether from each and every one.

Enchanted, I thought. My mind quickly considered how much aether was being wasted just to keep the room lit. As we approached the bar, I sensed more aether. My eyes drifted to what looked like some sort of cooling box.

One of the attendants moved towards us only to be waved away by a portly man I assumed to be the innkeeper. Like his establishment, he wore fine clothes with buttons that glittered. Beneath the shiny veneer he had quite the belly that when coupled with his height — eye-level with Aunt Agnes — made him seem rotund rather than stout.

“Welcome to The Golden Purse, how may we be of service?” he asked.

Meredith was the one to answer. “My Mistress would like a two bedroom suite assuming every suite has a small servants room.”

“Of course. Will your Mistress be staying with us for long?”

“Two nights only,” Meredith replied.

“Very good. I am Jansen, owner of this fine establishment and if your Mistress requires anything you can come find me personally. The kitchen and bar are open at all hours so feel free to partake in our fine dining. It is some of the best in the district. Lethin will make sure anything you need is taken up to your rooms for you.”

Jansen motioned to a strapping teenager by the door before continuing.

“Your suite is on the fourth floor and faces the street so you’ll have a wonderful view of the district including the Duke’s castle. If you’ll follow me, I will get you settled in.”

The personal touch was a surprise until we got to the suite in question. Size wise the outpost in Hornpeak was likely a match for the Golden Purse, though we had made far less efficient use of that space. Rugs covered the floor of the room we were ushered into with a few seats, chaises, and couches set to one side and a setup that looked like a small kitchen to the other. I spotted silver enchantments on more than a few of the kitchen implements.

Four doors led off the room, three of them into bedrooms with the third a smaller room with bunk beds that I assumed were for the servants. The main bedroom, set aside for Agnes, had a single huge bed. Tall windows were cut into the wall and gave a view onto the street outside and over the buildings across the street so that the Duke's castle was visible in the distance.

The final room had a smaller bed, though still larger than any we’d had at the outpost, along with a sitting area. The windows were smaller, looking out to the side of the inn so that only a sliver of the street could be seen. Just seeing that the windows could be opened already had me considering whether to sneak out and have a look around the city after dark. I squashed the urge as I doubted Mum would appreciate it, even if I took Nazim with me.

I spotted Meredith paying the man, three aether coins falling into his hands. The expense itself seemed quite insane to me, but then, I suspected this was the best room in the inn at one of the best inns in the city.

“Alright. We’ve no time to waste at all,” Agnes called, drawing everyone back to the sitting room. “We will only have this afternoon and tomorrow to get what we need before we leave for Helenica. A few sets of clothes for Penelope and Sebastian will be our first stop — just enough to see them set for a few days upon our return. After that, a bookstore, and we’ll be finishing at an Enchanter’s. Meredith, be a dear and get some recommendations for the best places to visit from our host if you would.”

The mage-maid left the room only to be replaced by Thomas and the boy from below — Lethin I reminded myself — who were carrying in some of the luggage from the carriage. I ended up arguing with Aunt Agnes for a few minutes about what I could take with me as we headed out into the street. In the end, we had reached a compromise, my sword hanging on my hip, but my hatchet and buckler were left behind in the room. In a way, it made me feel naked.

As we walked down the street, it became more and more obvious how much Mother and I stood out because of the clothes we wore. All around us moved people of obvious wealth. They were mostly human but I spotted a few Dwarves and Beastkin along with a single Elf. Almost everyone seemed to have at least one attendant with them, with many of them accompanied by two. While some of those attendants were dressed more roughly, those almost always carried weapons. A few of the wealthy were similarly armed, though they were rarer than those like Aunt Agnes who simply strode down the street like she owned it. I, being both young and roughly dressed, looked like neither a bodyguard nor the child of a wealthy family.

“Here we are. Trindle’s Threads,” Aunt Agnes announced as she strode toward the door of the shop.

In the windows hung gowns every bit as fine as the one I had gifted to Mother for the harvest festival. Meredith opened the door, holding it for us as we entered.

A willowy young woman greeted us just beyond the threshold. “Welcome to Trindle’s Threads, how can we be of assistance today?”

Aunt Agnes didn’t answer immediately, looking around the room at various pieces of clothing that were hung on wooden pegs.

She turned back to the young woman, apparently satisfied that the quality of the clothing was up to her standards. “I will be needing three sets of clothes for my niece and grandnephew. Two daily outfits, demure but functional for my niece, and one formal wear. My grandnephew will require two outfits for day-to-day wear as well, though he is both rambunctious and energetic so they will need to be sturdier. His formal outfit should match his mother’s in colour and cut.”

“And how soon will Madam be needing these outfits?” asked the girl.

“No later than tomorrow afternoon,” Agnes answered.

“I believe that can be arranged. If you’ll follow me, I will confirm that we can meet your deadline. Then we’ll move on to taking the appropriate measurements and finally, Madam can confirm the style, cut, and colours of the outfits so that they meet your specifications.”

What followed was one of the most boring hours of my life. It felt as though I was drawn and quartered as the tailors took more measurements than I thought were needed. The entire time, Agnes prattled on about the current styles in the capital to the assurances of the tailor that she could meet the needs my grandaunt laid down.

I had wanted to have a say in the colours, my preference being towards the darker shades. Only one of the three ended up being a colour I wanted. The formal wear was to be a suit done in a deep red that matched my hair, with a black vest to go over the buttoned shirt. The day-to-day wear chosen was a light grey set of pants with a pale blue shirt and a dark grey set of pants with a charcoal shirt. Somewhere along the way, the tailor had made a drawing of my foot size and promised to acquire three sets of shoes to go with the outfits. Agnes had more to say on the style and colour of those as well.

Though I didn’t complain verbally, my face must have spoken volumes as on the way to the bookstore Aunt Agnes stopped at a cafe to buy food for Mother and me. I devoured the honey-coated nuts and dried fruit as though I were a starving child — realising that to some of these people, that is exactly what I looked like.

We didn’t tarry at the bookstore, Agnes bought two books on the history of Meravia for me before we left for our final destination — and the one I was most excited for. I had seen very few enchanted items in my life and was looking forward to finding out what was possible.

The store itself was lit with enchanted lights that connected to a thin silver array that ran all over the ceiling, making it look like there was a spider web above us. Agnes spoke with the store’s owner while I roved my eyes over everything I could find, with an assistant following behind me to answer any of my questions. The look in his eyes told me he thought I was a bumpkin — and he was right. But, he was clearly unwilling to offend my aunt, answering all my questions succinctly.

“What about this one?” I asked, pointing at a wand made out of a dark amber-coloured wood.

“A lightning bolt wand,” explained the assistant. “The wood comes from a black spruce tree found in the Festering Mire. The wood is naturally aether resistant, which increases the efficacy of the enchantment. The enchantment is wrought from gold, which means it could last for hundreds of uses before needing to be replaced. Recommended for individuals with a Lesser Aether Core. We guarantee such an individual could get at least three bolts from the wand before they would need to refill their core.”

I ignored the price tag which told me the wand cost more than two nights at The Golden Purse and moved on. There were clothes, weapons, armour, and rings in glass cabinets throughout the store performing all manner of magic. At the back, I found thick ceramic plates with holes in the side and symbols drawn on top that looked like runes.

By this point the assistant didn’t need to be asked as he moved up beside me.

“Runic plates,” he explained before pointing to the side where long silver chains hung. “You run the chain through the side of each rune plate to create a circle. They’re designed to be somewhat modular so you can change the enchantment if you know what you’re doing.”

“What would you use them for?” I asked.

“Any spell that you had the right runic plates for. Aetheric barriers would be the most common. Meant to keep the aether in. But you could create a zone to increase the recovery of those within, or modulate the temperature. Keep insects or beasts away. Conceal an area. As I said, you’re only limited by the number of runic plates you have, your knowledge of runecraft and the amount of aether you wanted to put into it. Though, these are made from silver so too much aether will hasten their destruction.”

I looked around to see if any were made from gold or maybe even platinum and found none. Perhaps such an expense was a little too much.

Turning to find Aunt Agnes, I paused as something prickled along my senses. I had been sensing aether ever since we entered the enchanters shop, so it wasn’t that. Turning to scan the room my eyes alighted on a short, posh looking gentleman with a finely oiled mustache and slicked back hair. He must have noticed my gaze as his eyes flicked to me before saying something to the shopkeeper and heading for the door. I watched him leave, still trying to figure out exactly what it was I was sensing.