Harry stood on a hill in thought. Esterad's, forces were finally gathered and would start marching on him tomorrow. He was in Velhad though, reaching Esterad would be no issue on dragon back. No, the real issue was a problem he had not yet considered. The armies of Esterad were from all his various territories and if he burned them, many of said territories would be undefended. He didn't have the forces to supplement the dead. Of course, he could assassinate Esterad but then there would be the issue of the man dying right before he showed up. As a sorcerer, he would already be viewed with suspicion and the death of their monarch said suspicion would only increase the mistrust.
Harry sighed as thought further on the matter. Perhaps, if he made the death public and made it look natural then there would be less suspicion upon him. Maybe he slipped while drunk and then knocked his head against a table. If it was at a feast among all his lords, which he would probably be doing tonight with the various lords under him, no one could rightly say he had done anything. He could apparate there tonight and do the deed. Then he could show up tomorrow on dragon back and force the nobles to submit to him. With their king dead, many if not all the lords would be willing to submit to him.
Of course, Esterad had a son. Tankred, if he was remembering the boy's name correctly. From what he heard, he was a studious young child under the teachings of a mage known as Sheala de Tancarville. Harry had liked what he had heard of the woman, she was devoted to research and her own studies rather than trying to manipulate rulers. Perhaps she could be useful to him.
"Your grace." A voice behind him said. Harry calmly turned around and looked at the man who had entered his temporary office. It was Sir Steffon. He was the man who Harry had fought several weeks ago to win the loyalty of most of Velhads men at arms. He had been true to his word and his men followed him loyally as well. Of course, there had been some deserters but that was expected.
"Sir Steffon, I take it the preparations to move out are done?" Harry asked the man. Despite the dragons, Harry was also taking three hundred of the men against Esterad. Mainly for show, he didn't expect them to actually fight or anything. By the time they got there, everything should be over.
"The preparations are done and we will move out tomorrow… I take it we will only arrive to secure your rule after the dragons go in?" Sir Steffon asked him, he could hear the tinge of nervousness from the man though he hid it well in his gruff voice.
"Correct. I don't plan to have the men actually fighting, the dragons should be good enough. Anyways, it is starting to get late. Make sure you and the men are well rested for tomorrow. I will see you in the morning Sir Steffon." Harry said as the man nodded at him. They both exited the room, Sir Steffon, to the barracks and Harry to his private chambers. He quickly locked the door behind him and blew out all the lights. With that, he closed his eyes and started to concentrate. Within a moment, he felt the pull of apparition and the sudden stop as he landed on his feet. He opened his eyes and looked outwards.
He stood inside an alley in the Kovir winter capital, Lan Exetor. It was the city/castle that Esterad would be launching his forces from. Him and his various lords would be in the city's keep. The city itself was actually quite beautiful. It almost reminded him of a more primal, medieval, Venice from his home world. Small rivers weaved through the town and it certainly had a beautiful charm to it. It also had the fact that it was a winter town which combined with the river city's other qualities gave it a winter wonderland feel to it.
Harry waved his hand over his face and if anyone looked then they would have seen his face turn rounder and his hair turn to a sandy blonde. His clothes changed to simple trousers and a plain long-sleeved shirt. The final touch was the random splotches of dirt he put on his skin. Now he would blend in with any other peasants.
With that done, he started walking through the peaceful city. It was night and barely anyone was out tonight. Despite this, you could almost feel the tension in the air. It was probably due to the army of five thousand men sitting outside the city walls waiting to march out tomorrow.
Harry ignored this and kept moving quietly through the streets and started to suppress his magical presence both physically and through various charms to make sure Sheala did not get a sense of him. He knew she was powerful and anyone who researched magic as much as she did, most likely, knew a few ways of detection.
Eventually, he entered to where the keep was and was forced to cast a Notice-Me-Not charm to make sure the soldiers patrolling would not see him. It seemed to work as he was able to walk right across the courtyard. When he finally reached the door, he cast a simple alohomora on the door and entered inside the keep. At this point, Harry had to be very careful on how he continued. One slip up and Sheala would be on him. It seemed she was currently in a tower and not joining the various lords and her King for the feast.
Harry put such thoughts to the side as he continued to travel through the unknown hallways, following the loud noises coming from the main hall. He closed in on the hall and finally found the entrance. Instead of going into it though, Harry pushed past and decided to find the kitchen. It would also have an entrance to the hall except it would be much closer to the head table which meant less chance for Harry to be detected. It wasn't hard as there was quite a bit of noise coming from the kitchen as well.
He slid into the room silently and saw that there was still a lot of work going on. It still wasn't too late into the night, barely 7:30 if he remembered correctly. He made sure not to touch anyone for fear his charms to keep him hidden would fail. He paused for a moment and looked at all the food and wine in the room constantly moving around. It was so tempting to put a curse or two in the various items but if anything to suspicious happened then it would be believed he had some sort of hand in it and that would certainly not endear him to the lords he wanted to conquer.
He moved to the door he saw several servants going through with food and beverages. He stepped through it when no one was coming and was now in a wide-open room that was most definitely the main room. The room was full with tables and men cheering and laughing about something or another. Harry looked to the head table but surprisingly found the head table's main seat to be empty. Where the hell was Esterad?
He spent several minutes trying to listen to conversations from a corner to see if one would spill where their King was. Unfortunately, Harry did not once hear any mention about where he currently was only some mentions of his possible plans to go up against Harry. There seemed to be a few who were actually thinking on it, especially since it had been confirmed he had dragons. Not exactly something an army could fight conventionally.
Harry finally tuned out and stepped back out of the room with annoyance. He was not familiar with Esterad's signature yet so he couldn't personally track down the man. He could try to use a tracking charm but Sheala might be able to block it or even pinpoint his location if he cast it. It was, after all, a charm that worked by sending magic outwards instead of on his person like his own charms. He grunted before wandering about around the castle. Maybe the man had gone to bed early. That wasn't ideal, he wouldn't be able to kill him then but perhaps he could do something to weaken him physically for the battle tomorrow.
He moved down a hallway and towards a stairway before quietly climbing up. He walked around until he found where he thought the bedrooms would be. He looked under the door and saw only shadows, he then unlocked the door and opened it quietly. He slid silently inside and closed the door behind him. He turned back and slowly moved towards the bed.
He only took four steps before suddenly a snapping noise broke the silence of the room and suddenly there was light. Several candles as well as a fireplace suddenly set themselves alight. What really caught his eye was the man sitting in a chair by the fireplace with a woman standing behind him, both were looking directly at him. Harry crushed down all feelings and shock and surprise as he looked at them and simply raised an eyebrow.
"Well, it seems I need to learn a few more tricks to hide my presence." Harry commented lightly as he thought of several ways to salvage the situation. Perhaps a memory charm on both? Of course, he would have to overpower them and he doubted Sheala would go down easy or quietly.
"On the contrary, I set up several wards to try and detect your presence yet I only knew you were here when you finally entered the room. I know very few sorcerers who could get past such protections even if they were hastily put up." The woman who he assumed was Sheala based on her youthful appearance and strange yet slightly provocative outfit. Harry looked at her, she didn't look she was about to attack him. The man sitting finally decided to speak.
"My sorceress, Sheala, advised that… we talk. She has expressed the thought that should I go to battle with you, me and all my forces will be vanquished with ease, even if I could defeat your dragons. Though I have to say, I expected something…different as far as your appearance went." Esterad said calmly yet had a firmness in his tone. Harry rolled his eyes before waving his hand over his face and dispelling the illusion.
"Ah." Was all Esterad said once greeted with his true appearance.
"So, you wish to negotiate? I must be honest, I never thought you would be smart enough too. I have heard you to be wise as far as Kings go but the fact you chose to try and seize my kingdom from me seemed to go against such rumors. What do you wish to offer knowing that I can basically destroy you and your army with a snap of my fingers?" Harry asked after finishing his observations. Esterad frowned but Sheala put her hand on his shoulder and this seemed to calm him.
"You are correct. It was foolish of me to attempt take on a man who single handedly created his own kingdom, including the dragon pass. I should have, at the very least, better researched you. Unfortunately, I thought you an easy target and would be willing to submit to my rule. I completely discounted your dragons as hearsay and barely knew anything of your power. Sheala tells me… your something of a legend among sorcerers." Esterad said as he eyed Harry warily. Harry smirked slightly before biting it back.
"I see. Well, here is my point of view. Your subjects walked into my kingdom and basically tried to take advantage of me. My first instinct was to crush you completely to make sure no other kingdom would ever try. However, on further thought, I decided to conquer you instead. I felt there was no need to kill all those under you for your mistakes. If you do want to talk negotiations, then I am still walking away with control of Kovir and Poviss. Come to terms with that." Harry told him with a bored expression. He knew the man would not accept. It was a lot to hand over an entire kingdom to your enemy.
As he predicted. Esterad glared at the demand and made to stand from his chair but, again, Sheala put her hand on his shoulder and stopped him. She looked at him with a calculating gleam in her eye. Before looking down at Esterad.
"My king, I would remind you that you attacked one of the most powerful sorcerers in the world and the fact that you and I are alive at this moment is only by his mercy. Besides, he has given us a chance to salvage this terrible situation." Sheala pointed out smartly. Harry tilted his head at her curiously. While the legend part from earlier may have been true, it was not known his own true power level. Yet, despite the lack of knowledge, Sheala seemed quite sure of her words. He wondered why she would think such a thing of him. It was most likely the truth but he was curious how she came to such a conclusion.
"You seem quite well informed of me Lady Sheala. For someone who goes through such lengths for secrecy, it is quite curious that you do." Harry commented though tried to keep any threat out of the question. He was more curious than anything else after all.
"I have done my fair share of research on you. It was one of my main cases of study before settling in Kovir and Poviss under King Esterad. You are quite well traveled, King Hadrian." She said using his official title. Harry eyed her and thought on what she said. It was rare to hear of sorcerers going to such lengths to find information on him but he supposed it was only a matter of time before someone did.
"I see, impressive. Your king sees no benefits to my conditions. What do you think?" Harry asked now questioning her. Esterad seemed eager to see how she would salvage the situation as well.
"Well, I would like to clarify, what do you mean by control of Kovir and Poviss?" Sheala asked.
"It means Kovir and Poviss will be part of my kingdom and ultimately submit to my rule." Harry responded back. He was pretty sure he could already see where she was going with this.
"Ultimately?" she asked again with a raised eyebrow.
"Ultimately." Harry confirmed with a nod.
"I see. Well what about a solution where everyone gets what they want. King Esterad can still rule over Kovir and Poviss but the kingdom itself will be a margraviate that is under your rule." Sheala offered. Harry smirked internally but said nothing. Esterad did not seem happy about the suggestion.
"That is your plan? That I give this man my entire kingdom? Perhaps I was wrong to listen to your advice after all Sheala." Esterad shouted as he finally stood up. Sheala did not seem too upset by the way the conversation was going. In fact, she hadn't moved even with Esterad now glaring down at her.
"My King, my goal is to keep you alive first and in some form of power second. If you cannot agree with this man then the ones who suffer are not just you but your wife, Lady Zuleyka, and your son Tankred. King Hadrian will most likely have to kill them to stop any of your future progeny from taking back control. This way keeps you both in power and your family alive." Sheala explained both calmly and smartly to the man.
"So, I just roll over to this man? Is that what you wish?" Esterad demanded still glaring down at her. It was at this point that Sheala finally glared back.
"If you recall, I advised you not to try and threaten the man in the first place. Despite my advice, you did so anyways and we are now in this situation. So yes, if you want you and your family to live, I advise you to 'roll over' as you so eloquently put it and not let your pride be the death of your family. Or don't listen to what I have to say, again, and simply face the consequences." Sheala said as she stepped back and looked at the man.
Harry was impressed with the way she talked to her King. It took a strong person to stand up to someone of authority and tell them that they were wrong, made a mistake, or both. Sheala seemed to show her ability to do all three. Such a trait could be useful to him.
Esterad looked at her for a moment before seeming to back down as he realized the situation he was in. He turned around and looked at Harry. Harry simply raised his eyebrow at the man.
"Would these terms be acceptable for you then?" Esterad asked begrudgingly. Harry smiled.
"Just a slight tweak. Kovir and Poviss will be a Protectorate of the Avalonian kingdom, that's the name of my kingdom by the way. It ties it more than margraviate does. It won't mean that much difference. Esterad, I will leave you to run Kovir and Poviss. The more loyalty you show, the more control I shall give you. The less loyalty… well, I'll let you figure it out on your own." Harry told him as he looked the man in the eyes. Esterad said nothing before nodding slowly and stomping towards the door. Harry watched him open it and leave before looking at Sheala who still stood and stared at him.
"Well, that was anticlimactic. I was expecting much more resistance from the man. You wouldn't have had anything to do with that would you?" Harry asked as he looked at the woman. Mind magic was not something very well practiced in this world and was often times messy. It did, however, seem strange that Esterad seemed so ready to cave to his demands.
"It is not you or I who truly made the difference, it is his wife. She also counseled him to not poke a sleeping dragon that they knew nothing about and he did not listen. Then, in one day, you took over an entire territory and seemed to manage to win the allegiance of much of the people there. Esterad regrets letting his own ambition cloud his judgement and hates himself for not listening to his wife when he had the chance. Now, so close to combat, he will do anything he can to keep her and his line safe, even if it means bending the knee to an enemy." Sheala explained to him.
Harry thought on it and nodded. He supposed it made sense, though he was surprised by the love Esterad had for his wife. Most marriages in this world with nobles were arranged and often times loveless. That he cared and considered her opinion so highly spoke volumes of their relationship.
"And the whole waiting in the room bit?" Harry asked as he sat in a chair opposite of the one Esterad himself had been sitting in. Sheala smoothly took the other the motion caused her already tight dress to cling to her even tighter. He wondered if the move was on purpose.
"I figured you would wish to try something tonight and properly prepared for such a thing." She spoke evenly. Harry raised an eyebrow but said nothing further on it.
"It's quite impressive this ability of yours to appear somewhere else. Even now, I sense you in the tower across the keep yet you stand here in front of me." Harry said letting his question hang in the air. Sheala smiled with pride. She reached down her cleavage and pulled up an amulet attached to a thin chain he had not initially seen. It was golden and circular with a beautifully cut amulet in the middle of it. The gold band had several runes in elven and Harry would be lying if he said he wasn't impressed by the complexity of it.
"I made this rather recently. It projects my presence in a designated location of my choosing to help me avoid those who would try to track me through magic. Not that many try such a thing but I was curious if it were possibly to do so and achieved it." Sheala explained proudly. Harry nodded as he listened. That must have been some complex magical. More impressive due to the fact that the projection did not seem to have a trace back to its caster, that was something he had not yet encountered before.
"Very impressive Lady Sheala. You know if I didn't know any better, I would say you looked familiar. We haven't met before have we?" Harry asked as he took his eyes off the amulet and back to her face. He had a very good memory and something about her face had a familiarity to it. More likely he knew someone related to her then her herself.
"Yes, we've met before." She said matter-of-factly. Harry's eyebrows shot up. He immediately tried to rack his brain trying to remember if he encountered Sheala before. It's not like he ever really interacted much with other sorcerers and sorceresses. After racking his brain, he could still not remember where he had seen her, even with the help of occlumency.
"I am afraid I don't recall. Can you refresh my memory?" Harry asked politely.
"It is not surprising. When we met, I was just a little girl, long before I became a sorceress. No, at the time, I was just the poor daughter of a farmer who just watched her father and mother killed in front of her by common bandits looking for gold that we didn't have. They were going to rape me, I remember them speaking of how they were going to take turns with me. That's when you showed up. I remember thinking you some sort of vengeful god with the way you simply appeared and seemed to almost glow with power. You killed each one of them painfully if I remember correctly. You used spells that I don't recognize to this day." Sheala explained as she gained a far away look in her eyes. Harry frowned as she recounted her story.
He did vaguely remember doing such a thing many many years ago. In truth, he had done similar things many times back in those days. It was before he had truly started manipulating and making plans. He had nothing to do except go around and try and help people. It's how his reputation first came about.
The incident with Sheala in particular wasn't special in his head as one might think. He remembered simply coming upon the scene and murdering the bandits in anger for what they had done. He did remember the girl and could see the similarities in the woman now in front of him.
"I took you to an orphanage in Oxenfurt after that. You couldn't have been more than seven. Once I dropped you off, I remember going back to bury your parents. I remember burying them together under the large tree next to their home." Harry said as he reminisced sadly on that. Another incident where he was just a little too late. He knew better to blame himself but such a thought could only help so much. He had long since stopped paying attention to what he couldn't save and instead on what he could.
"Yes." Sheala said slowly with a nod, "You knew the caregiver there and left several coin bags to help support me at the orphanage. I used it to help get an education. I then eventually got an apprenticeship with another sorceress and was trained in the mystic arts. I wished to one day be as powerful as you." Sheala said with a smirk as if remembering something amusing.
"Well you didn't do to bad for yourself in that regard. You are one of the most powerful sorcerers known in the Northern Realms if not the world." Harry responded easily.
"Yes, and yet I have a feeling I still have not even scratched the surface of your power and knowledge in magic. In fact, I doubt I ever will now that I know what you are capable of so many years later." Sheala told him slyly. Harry said nothing, he simply stood up.
"I suppose it is time for me to take my leave then. I will arrive tomorrow officially to obtain Esterad's surrender. I will be bringing all my dragons so make sure Esterad is on his best behavior." Harry said and with that, he apparated away not waiting for her to answer.
Avalon
Harry appeared silently in his office and saw Merri asleep at his desk on top of papers she was probably working on at an earlier period. He walked smoothly up to the desk and gently knocked on the wood with his knuckles. Merri, sprang up from the sudden noise and looked around widely for an intruder before her eyes settled on him.
"Hadrian, oh. Sorry, I was just doing paperwork and must have fallen asleep." She apologized before rubbing the sleep out of her eyes. Harry shook his head at her.
"Don't kill yourself doing this work Merri. Go to sleep when your tired, in your comfortable bed at home, not my uncomfortable desk." Harry gently chastised.
"Yeah that was the original plan. Anyway, what's wrong with you? You seem troubled by something. Wait, has the assault against King Esterad already ended?" She asked as she looked at him with sudden suspicion.
"No and it doesn't look like there is going to be one." Harry said as he thought on his meeting with the king and the sorceress.
"And? Is that not a good thing?" she asked with confusion. Harry thought about that for a moment before hesitantly nodding.
"I suppose. It is not that, it is something else. I met his sorceress and she seemed amicable to helping me." Harry admitted. Merri seemed even more confused.
"Is… that not a good thing?" she asked again. Harry shrugged.
"Maybe not a bad thing but I don't think I would consider it a good one. It's strange. First Findabair seems to take a random interest in me and now Sheala de Tancarville. Both of them are members of the Lodge of Sorceresses. There's no way that could be a coincidence." Harry said darkly. Merri frowned. Harry knew she wasn't very familiar with magical community workings yet but she probably recognized the name.
The Lodge of Sorceresses was a group of only female magic users and not just any users either. They were some of the most powerful known sorcerers in all the lands. He met some of them of course in the form of Yennefer and Triss. He wasn't actually aware of all the members though, only most of them. It wouldn't be hard to find out but, until now, he hadn't really cared or been concerned by them. He didn't like their sudden interest in him.
"How did she help you?" She asked.
"Esterad acted strange. There is no way he would simply give me his kingdom and I am not buying the whole spiel of wanting to please his wife. I suspect she used some weaker mind magic on him to make him less resistant to the idea of my rule. That in itself is strange. Sheala has never cared much for politics and rulers which means she is most likely doing these things for the lodge. If she's aiding me for the lodge then that means the lodge has some vested interest in seeing my success, not that I need their help." Harry confided while thinking of possible benefits the lodge might get from either his rule or establishing themselves as friends to him.
"Well, just kill them I say. I don't like scheming sorcerers anyhow." Merri told him blandly as she laid her head on the wood of the desk. Harry chuckled at the faux suggestion.
"I am not so cruel to kill for no reason, especially if all they have done so far is to aid me. As long as that's all they do then I see no reason to attack them. Plus, many are in advising positions. It would be much harder to fight all the Northern Realms if they decide to convince their rulers of my true danger. I suppose I can stomach their annoying habit of trying to manipulate me." Harry told her.
"You know, Isabel wasn't happy when you didn't come back with me." Merri told him. Harry frowned.
"We haven't had any mysterious deaths or disappearances have we?" Harry asked with a coldness. He had fed Isabel before leaving and she didn't actually need blood that often as an Unseen Elder.
"No, I check often. Still, when do you think her little hiddie hole in the mountains will be done?" Merri asked.
"Soon. I'll finish it as soon as I finish dealing with Kovir and Poviss. I discovered a way to link the gateway back to her home world recently so I just need to apply the magic and it'll be finished. Though I am a little concerned. Isabel seems…to like the city. A concerning fact." Harry said almost to himself.
"You can't think she would choose to stay here." Merri asked/ demanded. Harry shook his head.
"I don't know about that but I'm scared she might try and visit. She is relatively close to here. Then again, she will hopefully be to busy guarding her gate. She has killed quite a few vampires who have tried to come up north. Apparently, she doesn't wish for it to be discovered her gate was destroyed." Harry told her. He found the thought a little amusing. He may not to be able to stand up to her in a fight yet but he did cause a potentially very embarrassing situation for her.
"At least she is good for something. Last thing we need here is more blood suckers." Merri;s muffled voice said as she still laid on the desk.
"We've been lucky when it comes to monster habitation. Most don't live this far north, save for the dragons. I am sure we're going to have to deal with more now that we will control Kovir and Poviss. The air there is warm enough that several creatures could probably call it home. I have already encountered an insecticoide nest while down there. I should get some Witcher's to move up here. Not enough at Kaer Morhen." Harry said fully realizing he was talking to himself by the end of his little speech.
He was pulled from his thoughts when he heard a soft noise originating from his companion. He looked back down at Merri and realized she was snoring softly. He rolled his eyes before magically picked her up and apparating into her home. He walked slowly to her bedroom followed closely by her floating, slumbering form. Once entered, he quietly pulled back the covers and placed her softly down into the bed. After he placed her, he moved the covers over her.
"Seriously Merri, take better care of yourself. I need you to run things here while I am gone." Harry chastised. She snorted in her sleep as if responding to him and he almost smiled. With her in bed. He disappeared from her home and made his way back to Velhad. It was time to prepare for tomorrow.