– Ria –
[Physique : 11]
[Mana : 24]
[Mind : 11]
[Defense : 10]
[RazenHeir flame : 20]
[Martial proficiency : 10]
[Height : 1.35 metres]
[Weight : 55kg]
Hikari walks back towards the estate. Ria sits on her shoulders.
She was back to her normal morning run.
"Don't be disheartened. Transporting all of those goods back and forth did more than you think. Though, now that trade relations have broken down, I guess we are back to square one. Just like when the wyverns raided the trade caravans to Herdial and stifled trade."
She approached the town around the estate. From her shoulders, Ria could get a good view of the town.
"The steel forging seemed to have gotten better. Much better infact. I heard from the blacksmiths that you and Ella did something with the furnace. I'm really curious to know what you did. RazenHeir flame is not hot enough to burn steel. Well, I guess there's no need for me to pry further. Though, it does make us some enemies as we are now competition."
"More war?"
"Oh no. Not that kind of war. The ore supply might be a bit inconsistent due to their meddling. But they can't actually stop us from doing business. Besides, now that we have a more consistent supply of steel, we can expand our standing forces. With the old Carla houses gone, we are going to have to field a larger army to defend our expended territory. There's now a decent pool of young men to pull recruits from."
"Nice"
Hikari saw a group of merchants tearing down their stands.
"Unfortunately, some businesses that were here had to close. There is no longer the volume of trade with Herdial that justifies their existence. Many of them are moving west towards Moradale. I doubt their lives will be easy as Moradale is not particularly kind to those without gold in their purse. Despite your best efforts, our estate can't support that number of people. Neither would they be able to make a living in Herdial as it is."
"I see."
A convoy of horse carts strolled into town, carrying sacks of beans.
"Don't be disheartened. Look there, the first harvest is finished. The beans grow fast. Our estate always had at least some agriculture capability, even during the colder parts of the year, it's not so cold that nothing would grow. The problem is that our lands are never fertile enough to feed even ourselves. I hope the Rothenmores could supply us with enough fertilizer to last until things tide over."
A column of troops marched into town, flying the flag of a single of a flower.
Armoured knights doning the heraldry of their house disembarked their wagons.
"The Purevain house. I wouldn't say we are rivals. But my sister did pull an upset on them during the tournament to determine the final rankings. Well, maybe upset is a rather strong word. Historically, they have always placed above us in the rankings. But we're still in roughly the same league so the gossips about the incident died down within the same afternoon. Nobody cares about two middle tier houses with little to no chance of topping the charts. They would care a lot since It sank their glimmer of hope at attaining the grand prize however small. I heard they were actually quite serious hehe."
"The grand prize?"
"A seat at the top of the spire city. The pinnacle of knighthood. Guardians of the realm. And well, enough gold to even buy you chocolate for a lifetime."
"Really?"
"Yes. With you, perhaps this coming semesters, you may be the first serious contender the RazenHeir house had fielded in its history. Oh, and once you attain the said pinnacle, would you still keep me as your lady?"
Hikari nudges her with her finger.
"Hehe. Anyways, we have no real squabble with the Purevain house beyond that petty incident. They're just here to help us with the Carla thread. Actually I doubt they're are genuine about helping so I'm making them pay rent which I haggled their eyes out. The greedy bastards deserve it. They're only here because there's profit to be made from the ghoul mothers. On the plus side, it looks like you earned yourself a break from having to go to the front."
"He."
"Eventually, we have to deal with the Carla problem though. We can't be having a war directly on our borders indefinately. I attended the security council back in Moradale. His lordship is likely still stuck in that room. Impossible to get those pork bellies off their chair without the smell of profit I tell you."
"Hm."
"Yes, but I did overhear them say something about a gate forming in the old city below Carla. The place had already been raided dry of valuables years ago."
"I'm ready to fight."
"Oh I hope you don't get to. We still have to raise more money for your tuition. Looks like the Herdial royal house won't be paying us for clearing the wyvern peaks. Not in gold anyway. The money we have made so far just about keeps the estate afloat. It's not easy to sell the artifacts you brought back. You are emptying out the granaries like there's no tomorrow. I think the academy would certainly send me the bill for that."
Hikari looks away in embarassment.
"But hey, cheer up, there is enough surplus to pay for the first semester. I am going to have to focus on finding another major raid. It's not going to be in Herdial as I have originally planned since they literally can't pay us. Even If that's not enough, there's ways to make money even while enrolled in the academy."
They reached the estate.
There was a group of gardeners and builders constructing a green house.
"It won't be as easy to procure the herbs you need from Herdial anymore. Your stamina might feel worse and your joints would suffer more strain without proper nutrition. We're gonna have to grow them ourselves in the estate. We still need to find wheatgrass which you need to eat en masse. We can grow them in the fields but that might cause riots with starving farmers who want food."
"Thanks."
They walked past the courtyard.
"Don't sweat it. Hey, look at Ella. I brought an adept robe and a staff for her. She's a mage isn't she. I don't think it's of her level, but it's the best we can afford right now."
Ella points her staff and aims at a boulder. The crystal at the tip burns bright with her wyvern flame, focusing into a beam. There was a scotch mark on the stone where a slither of stone melted.
"Good Ella."
Ella turned to her and bounced in joy.
They reached Hikari's chambers.
Hikari bent down and lowered Ria onto the ground.
She turned and blushed before disappearing under the curtain.
Hikari does her routine stretch.
Thud. Thud. Hikari stepped into her chambers.
She stopped at the door step to bundle her messy hair together.
The puckering sound on her running flats.
"Welcome back, my knight. Did you have a good run?"
"Yes, my lady."
Ria leaned forward and took a sniff. She winced and almost choked.
Tearing up, she glances up at Hikari and nods.
"Smells like it alright. You are so hardworking."
She kisses the tip of Hikari's shoe again.
Hikari kept still. If she moved, the steam built up on her soles would suffocate Ria.
"I'm so lucky to have such a great knight like you …"
She licks the tip of the shoe and wipes it with her hair.
She plants another kiss.
"Smooch* Thank you for being my knight. Smooch*."
Hikari let out a brief giggle.
"Let's eat first."