Wild Era 3, Ch 10: Settling Matters

Baron Kean’s Mansion

Toren Kean looked down at the communication amulet in his hand and frowned. 

Eleven of the stones were intact. The twelfth, he’d burned out himself to break the connection to Verasun. Now, he was wondering if he should have kept it. 

There might have still been room for a deal that was advantageous to them both.

He was a merchant and a noble. He followed profit, and he could see the value in this new Verasun, especially if he could get some control over the man’s guild contacts and influence with the city lord.

He’d underestimated that connection, as well as how highly the city lord apparently valued Kelin. 

He’d thought the new baron would be young and inexperienced, a strong fighter but not adept in politics, but his unexpected appearance an hour before had driven home who he really was. 

He’d had everything in his grasp and was already a step ahead of the rest of them.

Kean could try a new contact and wait to see if the man was willing to bargain, but after a moment he shook his head. 

That bridge was burned and Verasun wasn’t going to work with him so easily. 

Kean also had his pride to consider. He couldn’t be seen to give in so easily. If they made a deal, it had to look advantageous to him.

Moreover, he had no intention of paying for some academy or whatever Verasun was calling it. It would cut too much into his annual profits.

That left the harder way.

If he couldn’t work with this new Verasun, he’d have to remove him from the picture.

He spent a moment considering his options. Then he stored the amulet away and pulled out a ring that had a deep blue stone set into the top. 

The depths of the sapphire shimmered with mana and shielding enchantments, ones that had been intricately inlaid. 

When he activated it, protective runes formed in the air around him, glowing as they created a shielded area that protected the conversation from eavesdroppers. 

A thread of power woke the connection to the person on the other side, someone who was a thousand miles away, at least if Kean’s guess about his real identity was correct.

“Contract,” he said, speaking in the abbreviated form that the assassin’s guild insisted on. “Baron Verasun, named Kelin. Highmist. What price?”

There was a pause as the connection hummed with mana. 

“Refused.” The word was cold and filled with killing intent. “He has a Seventh Evolution Herald backing him, which you should know. Remember your place. If you forget, you will be reminded.”

As soon as the last syllable faded away, the gemstone exploded. Sapphire fragments tore through the room. There were a dozen that ripped through Kean’s hand and exploded into a fiery rain as they struck the walls. 

The hand that had been holding the ring turned into a mangled wreck, missing two fingers and half of its flesh. Kean screamed as he grabbed at it with the good one, staggering in pain as blood poured away from his grip. 

The fragments were too small to threaten his life and his hand had taken most of the damage, but his body had half a dozen holes in it too.

“Bastard!” he snarled as he fumbled with his storage ring, which was dangling on the broken hand.

He pulled out a major healing potion from his ring and drank it before he hurled the empty vial at the wall across from him, where it shattered against the stones.

As his wounds slowly closed and his fingers began to regenerate, he looked at the damage to the room around him and his blood that had painted the walls.

His eyes grew cold.

The assassins’ guild would have been the most direct solution, but they were afraid of Verasun’s backer.

He snorted.

Pathetic. As if a Seventh Evolution Herald would spend that much time looking after someone who’s not even at the Second Evolution yet. 

They should have known better. 

Where was that Herald now? The answer was that he was too busy to deal with minor issues on a small world like Lareth. 

As long as there were no traces, what evidence could he find? 

Kean just had to keep his mana signature hidden and it would be the same as any other problem he’d dealt with.

It was too bad that the assassins’ guild turned out to be cowards afraid of a shadow.

He tapped his healing fingers on the table in front of him, and he scowled when he saw the charred lines that now marred the surface of the expensive wood.

His attempt at a quick solution had exploded in his face, so as much as he didn’t want to, it seemed like he would have to play along for now, at least if he wanted to cover up his other plan.

He pulled out a different communication artifact and sent a brief message to his banker, telling him to transfer 5,000 gold to Verasun’s contact at the guild. 

When he set the artifact down, his mood was dark, but his eyes were sharp. 

Over time, Verasun would grow complacent and he would find an opportunity to deal with him. When that day came, he would pay him back double for today’s pain.

For now, ideas for how else to hurt the man began to fill his mind and a murderous aura surrounded him, his mana roiling at the emotions running through his heart.

He knew Kelin had two apprentices at the guild, as well as some connection with that captain, Sandren...and apparently he cared about the orphans in the city.

Perhaps he could arrange something there and lure him out into a trap on the streets, one that would look like an accident.

He’d have to use some mercenaries for it, which meant cleaning up those loose ends as well, and that wouldn’t be cheap. 

He might have to bring in some through a private teleportation channel, either from Sarathia or from the northern pirates who lived at the Free Cove on the edge of the Ocean of Storms. 

The more distant, the better, since they would be the easiest to get rid of after the fact.

They would have to be at least at the Second Evolution, if not the Third, and the price it would cost made his lips twist.

As he considered the best method, he barely noticed as his consciousness began to blur at the edges and the world became hazy. 

It was only when his eyesight filled with lines of rainbow light that he realized something was wrong. He raised his now-healed hand and stared at it, frowning as he saw a haze of ethereal smoke in his vision.

He was still staring at it and wondering where the smoke was from as his soul ignited and he slumped over on the table.

***

Kelin’s Perspective

Kelin shook his head as he felt Kean’s soul burn away. 

He’d seen everything the baron had done since he placed the mark, including the conversation with the assassins’ guild.

If the man had dropped the matter there, Kelin would have as well, since at least the assassins knew to leave well enough alone, but Kean hadn’t been willing to give up.

It was a pity, but Kelin had no intention of leaving more enemies behind, especially ones that had that level of murderous intent, which he’d felt clearly. 

After he left Hill’s mansion, he’d returned to his room at the guild and settled down to observe their responses. The soul marks gave him a way to track their actions and with enough focus, he could see what they were doing. 

It took some effort and tested the limits of his current soul sense, but he hadn’t been called the Archmage of Souls for nothing. There was a reason his enemies had been terrified of him.

And some of his allies as well.

Once his strength recovered, he would be able to use a soul mark to track his enemies from a much greater distance, even if worlds separated them, but for now he was limited to a short distance inside the city.

He’d expected something like this. The nobles were used to getting their way, so he had never planned to trust them. 

They should’ve realized the state of things more quickly, but it took time for people to accept that things had changed. They had seen themselves as independent for too many years.

Delamere, Hill, and a few others were all plotting various forms of revenge, but so far only Kean had crossed the line. 

The others were focused on his dungeons and on trying to ruin him with new political schemes, which were things he was willing to ignore if they didn’t go too far.

The backing of the guild and the city lord should be enough to deal with those, but if not, he wasn’t concerned. He didn’t care much about the Verasun title and he didn’t plan to spend that long on Lareth.

Once they found out Kean was dead, most of those plots should evaporate anyway. 

With all of the spying they did on one another, they would realize it soon, probably before dawn.

They would undoubtedly think it was him, but they wouldn’t be able to trace it to him directly, and even if they did, they wouldn’t accomplish anything. 

They would only be able to wonder how he’d done it and who would be next.

If they wanted to do more, their options were to duel him, at which point he would repeat what happened with Silas Crest, to complain about him to the guild and hope that they would do something, or to attack him directly, which the guild would not allow.

Their hands were tied.

If necessary he could recreate Kean’s conversation with the assassins’ guild as proof that it was self-defense. That would be enough that Yaslen wouldn’t blame him, even if she came to ask. 

After Sleset’s appearance and the meeting last night, Kean should have known better. 

As for the remaining nobles, as long as they behaved, he would tolerate their existence.

He checked on the others a final time and once he was satisfied that their plots were limited, he let out a yawn, covering it with a hand even though no one was around. 

Then he stretched and did a few mana exercises to calm his mind before he collapsed onto his bed and got a few hours of sleep. 

The following morning, he spent a couple of hours in his crafting hall before he checked the guild desk.

Jesra looked astonished as she handed over a stack of messages, all of them neatly written on expensive, mana-imbued paper.

Kelin flipped through, reading one assurance of support after another, as well as their pledges of support for the academy. 

There was no mention of Kean’s death in any of the messages, but town criers on the streets were already aware of it and were announcing that a succession ceremony for his oldest heir would take place the following month, once the funeral was settled, by order of the city lord.

Some of the messages were more effusive than others, but all of the nobles he’d marked last night had sent a message, as had some of the ones he hadn’t.

There had been quite a few more in Hill’s mansion who hadn’t come outside, but they’d clearly heard about it. 

They’d chosen the wisest path.

All of them praised the idea of an academy, with some going so far as to say it would change the future of Highmist and Lareth, as well as other bits of flattery.

Even Kean’s promise was there, sent on his behalf by his banker. 

It assured him of the funding and included an expression of regret that the baron wouldn’t be able to work with him in the future due to unforeseen circumstances, but that his descendants were looking forward to their partnership.

Kelin glanced at it and set it back on the counter with the rest.

Besides that one, only one other message stood out, and it was from the city lord. 

Arcolen had sent a promise of his own and a payment of 10,000 gold to prove his support, with a comment that he would be glad to see a high-level academy in Highmist. 

It made him the second largest backer after Kelin.

Kelin held back a snort, since he knew Arcolen would try to take control of the academy eventually. He wasn’t able to help himself. 

The man probably thought he was being subtle.

The guild could deal with that in the future, however, if Kelin’s name wasn’t enough to do it after he left Lareth. By the time it came up, it wouldn’t be a concern.

For now, there was no reason to reject the funding.

“What’s the total annual funding now, assuming it stays constant?” he asked.

“Around 90,000 a year as a base, with a third from you,” she replied. “Although your contribution might be a lot higher if you put the dungeon income toward it too.”

“Is that enough?” he asked.

“Even 30,000 would have been enough,” Jesra said with a laugh, “at least for annual expenses. But with 90,000, especially since we just received the bulk of it at once, we can get started immediately on buying the land and setting up the buildings. 

“We can also start signing contracts with the faculty. We have enough to cover expenses for a year or two. The only question is where you want to build it and how large you want it to be. I have a few options for you to review.”

She set a map on the counter and marked out a few locations with circles of interest. Most of them were outside of the city.

“It will be cheaper to buy land outside,” she said, “and that way the money will go farther. It will also eliminate some of the influence from the city.”

Kelin reviewed the options and nodded in agreement. Most of the locations were just south of the city, near the river, but there were some even farther south toward the Shieldrun River.

“Let’s put a little distance between us,” he said as he tapped on one of them. “Close enough to walk in a few hours, but far enough that it’s troublesome, at least for anyone at the Basic Evolution.”

It wasn’t much, but it would be a psychological separation from the city that would help the students focus, even if it didn’t matter much to the nobles or higher-level people who might want to visit. 

The amount of land there was also useful since the academy needed space to grow, but with it being outside of the city, it would need its own defenses.

“Start hiring some earth mages and warders,” he said. “Have them survey the area and choose the best defensive location. I’ll review it later and give them a design to follow for the core wards. Then I’ll activate the ward cores myself to connect it all together.”

That would let him keep the majority of the design secret and under his control. They would only see the pieces of the puzzle and not the whole.

“I’ll take care of it,” Jesra said, nodding as she looked at the location he’d chosen. “That’s a good spot. There’s a hill there with a nice view over the river and forest. Except for all the monsters nearby, anyway...and three or four dungeons.”

“The students will need some challenges,” Kelin said with a laugh. “I’ll leave this to you for a bit. Once you’ve found the best location and decided on the initial footprint, I’ll give you the ward design. Don’t let me down.”

“I won’t,” Jesra said, beaming as she took the map back. “I appreciate the opportunity.”

“I’m glad,” Kelin said, returning the smile. 

Then he left the guild, heading for a nearby cafe that he wanted to try.

A short while later, he had a cup of steaming coffee and a bowl of interesting breakfast noodles in a tangy sauce and covered with sliced green onions and bits of meat.

As he ate, he checked on the nobles again, but they were behaving for now.

Among other things this morning, he’d stopped by the guild shop to make sure his orders to make dungeon materials available to the public were proceeding.

It hadn’t been difficult. 

Despite the delays Whitestar had tried before, this time he hadn’t protested at all. The guild council had officially agreed to it earlier this morning.

Two weeks was nothing, just a brief warning to the locals. It was a good chance for the guild to demonstrate the depths of its power without going overboard.

Even if he wanted to do it permanently, Yaslen probably would have agreed, and she was more than capable of crushing Whitestar’s resistance, if the man even had the backbone to try something now.

Thanks to the duel and this demonstration, the guild was swiftly regaining its place in Celadon. 

The threat of its power would be a reminder for the nobles after he left and ensure some stability for the academy, as well as pave the way for its growth. 

He let out a sigh as he felt the weight of some old memories leave him, ones that stemmed from his younger self.

He’d been carrying a large amount of resentment against the nobility and conditions in Highmist. It was only a small part of his awareness, but he’d still felt the weight of it.

Now he felt lighter.

As a Knight of the Path, everything he did reflected on the guild and it wasn’t in the guild’s interest to kill everyone who crossed his path, even if they had dozens of crimes in their past. 

What he’d done was enough and the point was made.

Jesra could manage the rest of the details, including the future payments and the building of the academy itself, but if there were any other issues, all she had to do was let him know.

The orphanage wouldn’t take long to change, but the academy was a more long-term goal. It would take at least a few months to construct the buildings and set up the faculty.

That was if everything came together immediately.

Improving the orphanage, dealing with the corrupt nobility, and helping others around him...those were the main wishes his younger self had held onto.

He’d been quite the idealist.

Kelin smiled at the thought, shaking his head slightly as he picked up his coffee, but it was filled with fondness.

He’d been just as idealistic once, when he was that age. It was just repeating his own history.

Perhaps it was his older self who was too cynical, rather than the other way around.

Either way, once the academy was done, most of the wishes his younger self had would be fulfilled and he could leave Lareth.

If nothing else, it was a way of giving something back to Highmist and to this world of his second birth. He would leave this place better than he had found it.

It was also a way of honoring Irian’s memory. 

A trace of pain flickered through his eyes at that, but he waved it away with old practice.

Whether it was his younger self or older, he was fully committed to building the academy, at least as long as it didn’t detract too much from his leveling.

The most important thing was to have the power to defend what you loved. Second was education and the arts. They were the highest good, expressions of the self that echoed in eternity.

It was difficult to build something that matched Irian, but all endeavors began with the first step.

He’d given Jesra some high goals to strive for in the construction of the academy and the design of its faculty, and he would contribute materials and knowledge as needed.

Perhaps one day Lareth would also shine among the worlds of the human domain.

A faint smile flickered across his features at the ambition in those words.

How could he not try? 

He had to do at least this much.

Hopefully it would be smooth sailing, but time would tell, and now that things were moving along, he had to focus on other things.

He’d planned to check on Yao and Naomi while he was back in the city, but Jesra had given him their schedule and it turned out they were in a survival training class for a few days, learning how to camp and protect themselves in the wild.

He had a plan for them that would require taking them on a small trip, one that would hopefully make them much stronger, but since they were busy, it could wait a little.

He might as well go check on the location of the academy and then deal with a dungeon he’d heard about that was off to the south.

Or perhaps two.

Jesra had given him a list of the trouble spots in the region and it would help the guild out if he got rid of them.

It shouldn’t take long.