Sorry for the delay; I couldn't get into the website yesterday.
I got a recommendation by geminidrake to have a footnote at the end of chapters if someone is recruited, so moving forward I'm going to do that in addition to updating the Tablet of Stars every time there's a new recruit. Thanks, geminidrake!
Chapter Four: Part Three
Though Reilly Krieger was confirmed to not be in the city, the group knew that it was not a good idea to linger in Alfsberg. After recruiting Jeane and Janna, the two set off for the Old Capital and the group decided their next move. "Should we head back as well?" Sigrun asked. "We've recruited four people to our cause, two of whom are opening shops for us."
Astraea contemplated for a moment, wondering if they should turn back or keep going. Once the moment passed she decided. "I want to keep going."
"Then where shall we go, Your Majesty?" Dawa asked her.
"Niebieska Brama."
The group visibly tensed. "I…don't believe that's a good idea, Your Majesty," Richard said. "After the Massacre of Innocents everyone there will know who you are."
"I understand the risk," Astraea said. "But I want to check on Erment and Gopal. They helped us greatly when I tried to flee into exile. I just know that they'll join us if I ask them."
"We do owe them greatly," Ferdinand admitted, nodding.
"Then it's decided," Sigrun said. She looked to Viki. "Can you teleport us there?"
"I can teleport you anywhere Her Majesty has gone that is safe," Viki said.
"Oh good—"
"But not out in the field."
The group stared at her stunned. "What?" Dawa asked blankly.
"I can only teleport you places from HQ directly," Viki told Astraea.
"Ah…why is that?" Astraea asked her.
Viki shrugged. "I don't know."
"'You don't know'?" Ferdinand demanded incredulously.
"It was the same during the Falenan Civil War," Richard spoke up. "With the Blinking Mirror we can teleport back to the Old Capital and from there she can teleport us anywhere safe."
"Hey, wait a minute," Sigrun said, raising a hand. "Blutkrieger was Astraea's home for eighteen years. You can teleport us there, right?"
Viki shook her head. "I cannot. It's not safe."
"Why can't you teleport us there?! We could end this conflict right this second if you teleport us there and Astraea takes on the King!"
Viki raised her right hand. "The Blinking Rune won't put Her Majesty in danger. If we teleport to that place, Her Majesty will die. The Blinking Rune knows this, so it won't allow me to send her there."
"Ah, so that's how it works?" Richard asked, his eyes wide. "Commander Wilhelm was always complaining about why you didn't just teleport Prince Freyjadour to the capital of Falena during the war! So it was because the Prince would have died if you did that?" He looked at Astraea and then back at Viki. He let out a laugh. "Wow! The Blinking Rune must really like the Tenkai Star, huh?"
Viki shrugged stiffly. "This is how it always is."
Astraea had so many questions that she wanted to ask, but she could already see that Viki was not being forthcoming with information. She decided to leave it alone for now. "You can teleport us to Niebieska Brama though, right?"
Viki nodded to that. "That town is safe for you."
"Then should we return to the Old Capital and have her teleport us directly?" Dawa asked.
Astraea thought about it for a moment before shaking her head. "I want to travel on foot for a bit. I want to see if I can gain new recruits along the way, but also build my strength."
"Good idea," Sigrun said. "But we should be careful traveling through to Niebieska Brama. Crossing the Emerald Strip will be quickest, but that's terrain between Blutkrieger and Triona, which I imagine we should avoid." She looked to Viki for confirmation, who nodded.
"I know it will take us a couple of days to reach Niebieska Brama, so I want to use the time productively," Astraea said. "Once we're done there, then we'll return to the Old Capital."
It was late afternoon when they reach the south entrance to the Emerald Strip. The Emerald Strip was as luscious and beautiful as it was when they crossed it to get to Triona. But it was also not as deserted as it had been back then. Though they saw the occasional traveler they also had many random encounters with monsters. And the monsters were tougher than before. Astraea was thankful for the experience she gained there.
As they approached the unofficial crossroads in the Strip—the hallway point between Blutkrieger and Triona—Astraea noticed something…peculiar to their left. The otherwise perfect grass looked disturbed, and in its place she saw what appeared to be…crops. Like cabbage, or something. She stopped in her tracks and looked down at them. "Someone is growing produce out here?" she wondered aloud.
"This is open land and not private property," Sigrun said, her brow furrowing in confusion. "Who would grow out here? Especially when there are monsters freely roaming?"
"It must be that gentleman," Richard said, pointing west of their position. Astraea looked where he was pointing and saw a man who appeared to be in his twenties kneeling along an empty row. He wore a long fur-lined blue coat and his shoulder-length hair was partially loose and partially tied back in a man bun. He wore brown gloves, and he was stroking his chin. Astraea moved closer to him, the group following, and as he drew nearer he seemed to be…confused? Pensive? His expression was unreadable.
Wait! I know him!
Astraea gasped loudly as she shock filled her body and she took off running towards the man. "Your Majesty!" Dawa called, racing after her.
Astraea reached the man, just in time to hear him murmur to him. "It didn't take. Why didn't it take?"
But Astraea couldn't contain herself as she blurted out his name. "Wenke!"
The man quickly looked up, and the familiar Reiser eyes met hers. His brow lifted, and his mouth opened in shock. "…Princess Astraea," he breathed.
The rest of the group reached them. Sigrun took Astraea's arm and looked at the man. "Did you say Wenke, Astraea? Then…" she let her voice trail.
"Our brother," Astraea said, looking between Sigrun and Dawa, unable to contain her excitement. "This is our brother! He's a farmer, remember Sigrun?"
"Ah, technically I'm a gardener," Wenke said, his tone sheepish as he slowly rose to his feet. "I own no land of my own so I can't really call myself a farmer." He rubbed at his forehead with the back of his hand. "But…you know me, Princess Astraea?"
"Her Majesty knows all of her siblings," Dawa said, a note of pride in her voice.
Wenke's brow jumped with her words. He looked at Astraea again. "Then it's true. You challenged the King to Royal Combat."
"I did," Astraea said, her tone cautious. "Does that bother you?"
Wenke shrugged. "It has no impact on my life. I care not who's in power, just so long as it's a reasonable monarch. But given everything going on…I do not fault you for your actions."
Astraea swallowed thickly. "He…Did the King cancel your allowance too?"
Wenke looked confused. "No, I still earn what is owed to me as a recognized bastard. Did he cancel someone else's allowance?"
"Janna's."
"Poor girl. I don't know her but I heard her mother died. I can imagine it not being easy to lose one parent, and to be denied by another." Wenke shook his head and smiled wryly. "I still have both parents, but it is a less than ideal situation for me."
Astraea's throat tightened. As she had learned about her siblings she knew that Wenke's circumstance was less than ideal. His mother and her husband had a small farm and Wenke had three older siblings. But not long before Wenke was born his mother had curried favor with King Franz and had become one of his…companions. There had been a dispute when Wenke was born over whether he was the King's son or his mother's husband's son, but his Reiser blue eyes were undeniable of his lineage.
Particularly since his mother had golden eyes…and his mother's husband had brown eyes. From what Astraea had heard, Wenke's childhood had been…not good.
"So what brings you here?" Dawa asked. She spread an arm out to the crops that surrounded them. "Are you making your home here?"
"No, Lady Dawa," Wenke said. "I'm making a community garden. I'm growing vegetables for travelers who are hungry or starving to have a food source available on the Emerald Strip. I'm nearly done with it; all but two crops have taken root and are growing. I don't have any land of my own, and this land is unclaimed, so this makes me feel like I'm doing something. Like I'm making a difference."
"That's so kind of you to do," Astraea said. She looked around at his hard work and looked back at him. "Would you like to join me?"
"Join you?" Wenke asked.
"I'll give you space at my HQ to grow if you choose," Astraea said. "Your own farm and your own land. If you want to make a difference I can help you make a difference there. Especially if you think I'm better for this country than the King. Conall and Janna are already there, and so is Denzel. They would all love to meet you."
Wenke gave this a lot of thought for a long moment. "I appreciate your offer, Princess," he said finally. "But I cannot join you. Not at this time, anyway."
Astraea's heart sank. "May I ask why?"
"My work here is not done," Wenke said, spreading an arm out. "Everything I've planted has taken except for the potato's and carrots. For whatever reason they are not growing. There must be something wrong with the seeds I've used; I'll need new ones."
"I'll get you new seeds," Astraea said eagerly. "Potato and carrot seeds, right? I'll find some and bring them to you."
Wenke smiled warmly. "If you can do that for me then I would be glad to help you. I feel this community garden will help many people, but I cannot leave it alone until it finished."
"Then we'll be back," Sigrun said, nodding. "We'll find you replacement seeds and be back."
"Thank you."
Astraea was disheartened that Wenke said no, but she knew that it meant a lot to him to complete his work. She was resolved to find him seeds and bring them back to him.
I've had it easy thus far. Recruits aren't just going to fall into my lap; I need to work to earn their position in the Reformation Army.
When night fell they made camp in the Strip. The following morning they made a quick breakfast and set out. Two hours after setting off Astraea knew that they were nearing the north exit of the Emerald Strip. They were one step closer to Niebieska Brama.
As they drew closer to the exit, she suddenly became aware of a pulsating heat at her left hip. She stopped and looked down, and she saw that the large bag containing the dragon's egg was pressed to her hip. "Everyone, wait a moment," she announced and the group stopped. Astraea knelt down and carefully set the bag down, pulling the flap back to reveal the egg. For a moment she thought she saw the egg move ever-so slightly. Her head snapped up and she looked at Dawa. "I think it's hatching."
The group tensed, and Sigrun and Ferdinand drew their weapons. "Astraea, get away from it," her sister warned.
"Ah—where are the Dragon Knights?" Viki exclaimed, frantically looking around.
"This isn't Toran," Richard said, his tone surprisingly light.
"The only people who can properly rear dragons are the Dragon Knights," Dawa said. "Without them then the dragon will become a feral monster. We must deal with it."
"I can't believe that boy gave us the egg," Ferdinand grumbled.
Astraea raised a hand. "Wait," she said. "David bought this egg for a reason. I think we should—"
A loud roar from overhead caused them all to jump. Astraea looked up and her mouth dropped open in shock. For a brief moment the Sun overhead was obstructed by a large white body with a massive wingspan. It was monster. No—not just a monster. It was dragon. A white dragon with blazing blue eyes. It hovered above them and let a roar before it beat its wings and began quickly circling.
"I-Is that the mother?!" Richard exclaimed, drawing his sword.
"Get ready!" Dawa shouted.
"OH!" Viki shrieked. She frantically pointed towards the dragon. "Is that—is that—!"
To Astraea's surprise the dragon did not attack. Instead it swooped towards the ground and landed with a thunderous boom, causing the earth to shake beneath their feet. The dragon lowered its head and lowered its wings, and for the first time Astraea noticed that the creature was not alone. There were people riding on its back!
The person sitting in the front leapt off the dragon's back, his expression fierce. He was a man who appeared to be in his late forties with short dark brown hair and dark eyes. He wore elaborate armor and was holding a large two-handed sword. But his headgear…it was peculiar. It looked like a headband with dragon wings on either side of his head.
"Thieves!" the man spat, advancing upon them fearlessly. "By the authority of Lady Milia, commander of the Dragon Knights, you will step away from that stolen egg this instant!"
Dragon Knights? Astraea gaped in shock. This is a Dragon Knight!
She looked back to the dragon and saw the second passenger still sitting on the dragon. It was a young boy, possibly eleven or twelve years old, who had ginger red hair and brown eyes. His armor was more toned down than the man's, but he also had a headband with dragon wings on his head. He looked on wearing an amused expression.
That child is a Dragon Knight, too? I guess they start them off young there as well.
"Wait, we didn't steal this egg!" Sigrun shouted.
"You lie! Bright knows the eggs that come from our Dragon's Den, and that is one of our eggs! Thieves like you have stolen them from us! You will return it at once! You are in violation of not only the laws of the Knights, but also the laws of the Toran Republic! You WILL answer to both for your offenses!"
"Is that a threat against Her Majesty?!" Dawa snapped, stepping forward and unrolling her bullwhip. "No one threatens her!"
"I will take no threat against Her Highness as well," Ferdinand growled, stepping forward.
The Dragon Knight paused, though his expression was still hardened. "You are royalty of this country?" he asked.
"Sigrun and I are, Sir," Astraea said. She swooped up the dragon's egg and stood up. "And your timing is—"
"Then the royal family of Zelant is complicit with the theft of our eggs," he rasped, moving forward again.
"Does that mean we're going to war, Futch?" the Dragon Knight boy called from the back of the dragon.
"AH!" Viki screamed. She surged forward and pointed towards the Dragon Knight. "You! You, you, you!"
The man, Futch, stopped dead in his tracks. His features relaxed and a look of shock crossed his face. "Wh—Viki?" he sputtered. "Where did you come from?!"
"Oh—ah—um—I don't know," Viki stammered herself. "But he said you were Futch? You look so different!"
Futch looked her over, his eyes still wide. "You look the same," he said. "Why are you with these thieves?"
"We're not thieves!" Astraea exclaimed, surging forward. "We bought this egg off a merchant in Niebieska Brama! David Silverberg bought this egg! You know him, don't you?"
"Silverberg?" Futch's brow furrowed. "I do not know a David Silverberg, but I know the family name. They—"
"Hey, Futch!" The Dragon Knight boy leapt off Bright's back and hurried over. "Can I have that egg? Can I? Can I?"
"Gygax, you are still training," Futch said sharply. "You haven't proven yourself ready to take on your dragon companion!"
"Aww, that's not fair!" Gygax complained childishly, kicking at the blades of grass. "You got your first dragon when you were seven! Sharon told me so!"
"Yeah, and Sharon didn't get her first dragon until he was eighteen," Futch retorted. He gave Astraea a hard look. "Give me the egg," he told her.
"I think it's about to hatch!" Astraea said. As she said it, the egg began to shake violently in her hands. She yelped as it suddenly pitched to the right out of her arms. Gygax however quickly caught the egg in his arms, though it caused him to tumble over.
"Gygax, give me the egg!" Futch said sharply.
"But I'm ready for a dragon!" Gygax protested. "I know I am!"
"I'm your mentor and it's up to me to determine when you're ready! Our goal on this journey has been to get our eggs back to the Den! Not for you to get your dragon!"
"I've helped you get NINE eggs back to the Den!" Gygax shouted. "I've proven myself, Futch!"
Astraea looked between them, wondering if she should interfere or if it was her place to. After a moment she looked at Futch. "Do you have faith in him?" she asked.
"It's none of your business—"
"You will speak to our future Queen with respect!" Dawa hollered, readying her bullwhip. Astraea motioned for her to stand down.
"But—yes," Futch said after a moment. "I have the utmost faith in Gygax. He will become a great Dragon Knight. But right now he—"
His voice broke off with a loud 'cracking' sound. Astraea quickly turned to see the top of the dragon egg break apart. A long, amber-colored snout pushed up through the amber-colored shell, and a full but small dragon's head peeked out. The snout disappeared back into the shell, and then thrusted up against the shell. The top part of the shell further fractured and broke away revealing an amber baby dragon with brown eyes. Its eyes settled upon Gygax, who stared down at the baby with wide eyes and a gaping mouth. Their gazes locked for a long moment before the dragon burst out of the egg fully and clutched at Gygax's breastplate. It reared its head back and let out a croak, like it was trying to roar, and then proceeded to crawl upwards, trying to nestle on top of Gygax's head.
"Damn," Futch grumbled shaking his head. "The baby imprinted. It won't take anyone other than Gygax."
"Yay, I'm a full Knight now!" Gygax cheered, though he toppled over from the weight of the dragon on his head.
"You've had a problem with thefts?" Astraea asked, looking at Futch.
"Thieves broke into our Den and stole ten of our eggs," Futch fumed. "Commander Milia sent me out to find all the eggs. I was already mentoring Gygax, so he accompanied me on this trip. We found nine of them, and managed to get them back to the Den before they hatched. But this one…" he gestured to the dragon and shook his head. "He's not ready," he grumbled. "But I have no choice now. That baby is his, and he must rear it."
"It's so cute!" Viki squealed.
"I wouldn't call a baby dragon cute," Ferdinand muttered.
"It is kind of cute," Richard laughed.
"He's so fast!" Gygax laughed. The baby dragon did indeed seem to find its strength and was crawling all over him. "I'm going to call him Swift, Futch! Because of how fast he is!"
"All right," Futch said, though his expression was disapproving.
"I'm so glad you arrived when you did," Astraea said. "I-I had a feeling it was about to hatch, but we didn't know what to do."
Futch looked at her. "You said a Silverberg bought him off a merchant? Where?"
"Niebieska Brama," Astraea said. "He probably still has his stall if you want to see—"
"I will definitely be having words with him," Futch interjected. "What is your name, Miss?"
"Your Majesty," Dawa snapped.
"Astraea Reiser," Astraea said. "I—ah—am currently making a bid for the throne."
"So you are the next Queen of this country?"
"That's the plan."
"Then I need your help," Futch said. "The thief who stole this egg needs to be held accountable, and he needs to provide information about the any other thieves who were involved in the theft of the eggs. Can you take me to where he is?"
Astraea nodded. "Niebieska Brama is to the northeast. It will take a couple of days to reach—"
"Nonsense, we will fly there." Futch glanced towards Gygax and Swift. "We're leaving, Gygax. Don't let that baby out of your sight."
"I won't, Futch!" Gygax scrambled to his feet, hugging Swift to his chest. The joy in his expression was heartwarming.
"Wait, FLY?!" Richard exclaimed, his eyes wide with excitement. "On the back of that dragon?!"
"How else?" Futch asked him.
"Just for the record, the Reiser Royal Family wouldn't be stupid enough to steal eggs from the Dragon Knights," Sigrun said tersely, though she sheathed her cutlass.
Futch looked at her for a moment before rubbing his nape awkwardly. "I apologize," he said, though his tone was reluctant. "Let us go now."
Astraea wondered how all eight of them were going to fit onto Bright's back but decided not to question it. "I'm ready."
As Futch had said, they arrived to Niebieska Brama in just a few short hours instead of a few short days. To Astraea's utter amazement they were all able to fit onto Bright's back for the ride. But the ride was surreal and exhilarating—and extremely bumpy.
When they reached Niebieska Brama, Bright circled the port town once high overhead. The view was beautiful to Astraea, but at the same time the view gave them a lot of coverage area to see. "I see no boats arriving or departing!" Futch announced.
"Look!" Astraea shouted, pointing east. The group looked and several kilometers away they saw a familiar boat. Not familiar in the sense that they knew this specific boat, but that knew the boat's design. It was a warship…from the Bianca Alliance.
"One of yours?" Futch asked over his shoulder.
"No," Astraea said. "That's a boat from the Bianca Alliance!"
"Who's that?" Gygax asked.
"Our country is currently at war with them," Sigrun said grimly.
"Damn," Futch grumbled. He patted the side of Bright's neck. "Let's land outside of town!"
Bright obliged, and flew to Niebieska Brama's gate. Bafflingly nobody seemed to notice a dragon flying overhead with several passengers on its back. It looked like the citizens were going about their days as normal.
Bright landed on the patch of grass outside of Niebieska Brama. Astraea leapt off his back but immediately felt dizzy. She leaned a hand against Bright's side for support. "Thank you," she said, blinking rapidly to clear her vision.
"I did this more for the sake of the Dragon Knights than your sake," Futch said honestly. "Now please take me to where you bought Swift's egg."
Gygax cradled Swift to his chest and looked at Futch. "I think he's hungry. Do we have any milk?"
Futch looked away. "…I didn't expect the egg to hatch before we get back."
"I'm sure Gopal can sell you milk," Astraea spoke up with a smile. "Gopal's a trader in Niebieska Brama. And he's my brother."
"Then we'll stop off and see him after we deal with the thief," Futch said. "Gygax, stay here with Bright. And don't cause any trouble."
"I don't cause trouble," Gygax protested.
Astraea looked around her group, knowing that she needed to let Futch into her active party so he could confront Typhon. So that meant someone in the group needed to stay behind. Her gaze settled on Viki. "Would you mind waiting here until we get back?"
"N-Not at all," Viki said.
"Thank you." Astraea looked to Futch. "Follow me."
She led the group into the town, but she didn't linger on gossip. Futch meant business, and he seemed to believe that he had a degree of authority to arrest thieves inside another country's borders. She wasn't about to question the authority of the Dragon Knights, however.
They're strong warriors, and they tame dragons. From what I've read they're invaluable to the Toran Republic. I wonder…should I ask them to join me?
It seemed almost selfish to want to ask Futch, especially since his mission in Zelant was to recover stolen dragon eggs. But she had also seem his apprehension when he saw the Alliance warship. But she decided to leave it alone for now. "He's down this way," she said, leading the group down the familiar row of stalls.
"Step right up folks and marvel at this wonder of nature!" Typhon shouted from his stall. Astraea was surprised to see a small crowd had formed in front of his illegal stall. As they drew closer, she realized that a giant cage shaped like an oversized oval birdcage was hanging from the beams of his stall. And what she saw inside the cage made her stop dead in her tracks. Her eyes went wide and her mouth hung open.
"That's right, ladies and gentlemen!" Typhon announced, tapping the side of the cage with his cane. "For a reasonable sum of 2 million Potch, you can own yourself a human-sized talking duck!"
There was indeed a human-sized white Duck inside the cage. He wore heavy armor but she saw that his "arms" were wings and his head was shaped like a mallard duck's head. The cage did not seem large enough to hold him, as his head was touching the top. His golden eyes were narrowed, and he appeared to be seething with rage.
"Can it really talk?" a man asked.
"He's fluent in the common tongue," Typhon said smugly.
"Why isn't it talking now, then?" another asked
Typhon glanced at the Duck for a moment before looking back at the patron. "He doesn't like talking to strangers," Typhon said.
"What the hell am I supposed to do with a giant talking duck?!" a third man demanded.
"Well—" Typhon floundered for a moment and gestured with his other hand before he found his words. "He's wearing armor, isn't he? He can be your bodyguard! If you want a best friend, then you can buy him to be your best friend! And look at all that meat! If you have a large family, you can cook him—"
"HEY!" the Duck shouted at him.
The crowd exclaimed in shock. "He can talk!" a woman squealed.
"That's right!" Typhon said miserly. "And for 2 million Potch he's all yours!"
"That's inhumane," Futch growled, his jaw clenched. "That's not some animal! He's probably from the Duck Clan in the Grasslands!"
"How the hell did that guy get a Duck from the Grasslands here?!" Dawa demanded.
Futch looked at Astraea. "Is this bastard the person you bought the dragon egg from?"
Astraea nodded, but her eyes were on the Duck in the cage. She couldn't help but feel empathy for him.
Futch wasted no further time and advanced upon Typhon, nudging people aside as he did so. "Ah!" Typhon said obliviously, gesturing to Futch. "I see a serious buyer has arrived! Would you be interested in—"
"On behalf of the Dragon Knights of the Toran Republic, I hereby place you under arrest for grand theft, cur," Futch snarled in Typhon's face.
The color abruptly drained from Typhon's face and his eyes went wide with panic. He raised his hands as though looking to ward off a blow. "Ah—I have no idea what you're talking about," he said, laughing feebly.
"Don't lie to me," Futch snarled. "You are one of many conspirators who stole a dragon egg from our Dragon's Den, and you WILL answer for it!"
The crowd seemed to realize what was going on and quickly dispersed. Astraea took the moment to race over to the cage. "A-Are you all right?" she asked the Duck.
The Duck glared down at her. Astraea looked around and then leaned over the counter to look underneath. It was a mess of junk and papers. "Astraea, what are you looking for?" Sigrun asked.
"The key to the cage," Astraea said, pushing stuff out from underneath the counter.
"Don't bother," the Duck said coldly. Astraea straightened to look at him. "That bastard human put the key to this cage in a box full of other keys. It will take you forever to find it."
Astraea glanced towards Futch and Typhon and saw the former screaming in the latter's face. After a few moments Typhon suddenly slipped away and took off running down the street. Futch quickly gave chase after. "He'll be back…eventually," the Duck said.
She looked at the lock on the cage and grabbed it in her hands. "Ah…" she patted herself down and then glanced at the groups. "Does anyone have any tools?"
"That looks like a lock with three mechanisms," Richard said, his tone grim. "A lock pick won't work on it."
"You're trying to get me out?" the Duck asked. "Why?"
"You clearly aren't here voluntarily," Astraea told him. "And you're a long way from home. What happened to you isn't right, and I don't want someone to buy you to eat you."
The Duck scoffed and shook his head. "No one's going to eat me. They will pay dearly for it if they try."
"What's your name, sir?" Ferdinand asked him.
The Duck glanced at him. Seeing a non-humanoid made him relax somewhat. "Dudley of the Duck Clan," he said. "I'm a veteran of the Second Fire Bringer War."
"We'll get you out of there, Dudley," Astraea promised him. "Once I take care of this lock—"
"Do you have a halberd?" Dudley asked her.
Astraea's brow furrowed and she looked at her comrades before looking back at him. "No."
"Then leave the lock alone," Dudley said. "This idiot is asking a high fee for me and doesn't have interested buyers. I do not foresee him being successful in selling me. But I am without my weapon; he sold it the minute we arrived here. If you can find me weapon—my halberd—please bring it back here and then try to get me out of here."
"B-But we can't leave you here like this!" Astraea protested.
Dudley's features seemed to soften. "You have a kind heart, human. What is your name?"
"Astraea Reiser. I'm the future Queen."
Dudley seemed to brighten at this. "Then I have faith that you will find my halberd and bring it back to me. Don't worry; I do not foresee that bastard human being able to sell me before you get back."
Astraea nodded. "As soon as I find it I'll come back. I swear it, Dudley."
Dudley nodded as well. "Thank you."
She didn't feel comfortable leaving him, but she knew she had little choice if Dudley didn't want to leave without his weapon. Knowing that Typhon would be back (but not knowing where Futch was) the group headed towards Erment's armor shop. Through the door she could see Erment inside, but so was Gopal, and they were talking at the counter. Before she entered however, something caught her eye. A new stall she hadn't seen before had been set up in the alleyway near Erment's shop. A tall man who appeared to be in his late thirties stood behind a table with a sand-colored garapon wheel on top. The man had shoulder-length red black hair and he had a perpetual smirk, and he wore thick sunglasses. He wore a dark fur-lined coat over a gray shirt. His demeanor remained unmoved as they approached. "Step right up," he said casually. "If you want to earn quick and fun money, try your hand at garapon."
Sigrun, Dawa, and Ferdinand visibly bristled when they saw the setup of the stall. Astraea had a sensing feeling that it was because the man was peddling gambling. She looked at the man. "Sir—"
"Satoshi is fine, Your Highness," the man responded. He raised his hands when the group tensed. "Don't be surprised I recognized you. I admire your bravery for taking on the King."
Astraea decided to let it slide. She looked at the wheel again. "Can you explain this game to me?"
"Astraea—" Sigrun said.
"Of course, Your Highness," Satoshi interjected. He reached underneath the counter and retrieved a long, narrow box. He set it on the counter and Astraea saw that there were eight balls the size of marbles in the box; one white, one blue, one green, one red, one yellow, one silver, one gold, and one with rainbow hues. The silver, gold, and rainbow hues balls had a shimmer to them, where the other five balls had no such shine.
"The garapon wheel has 300 of these balls," Satoshi told Astraea. "Half are the are white ball, 60 are blue, 40 are green, 30 are red, 10 are yellow, 5 are silver, 4 are gold, and 1 is the "magic ball"." He pointed to the rainbow hues ball. "When you want to play, you grab the lever—" he pointed to the lever attached to the garapon wheel. "And spin it as fas as you can. The garapon wheel will spin as well, and after it's done spinning it will dispense one of these balls here." He pointed to the tray in front of the wheel. "Whichever color the ball is will determine your prize."
"What are the prizes?"
"If you get a white ball, then it's one of these." Satoshi motioned to the wall behind him. Astraea saw that it was full of random items. "Anything other than a white ball will be a cash prize. Blue will get you 3,000 Potch; green will get you 10,000 Potch; red will get you 30,000 Potch; yellow will get you 100,000 Potch; silver will get you 500,000 Potch; gold will get you 1,000,000 Potch; and the "magic ball" will get you 10,000,000 Potch."
Astraea gaped in shock as she heard the prizes. Dawa scoffed and shook her head. "Your Majesty, he said that half the balls are white balls. That means there's 150 white balls in that wheel, compared to 1 of those "magic ball". So you have a 50% chance of getting a white ball, and for the "magic ball"—"
"A 0.33333333% chance," Satoshi confirmed unashamedly. "But the chance is nonetheless still there, Your Highness. It's possible, just…with a lot of effort."
Astraea glanced at his stall. An idea came to her. "Would you like to join us?"
Sigrun, Dawa, and Ferdinand gaped at her in shock. "A setup like this would help us make money and would be good for morale," Astraea said.
"It may create gambling addicts, though," Sigrun warned.
"Oh, Prince Freyjadour had gamblers in his Army too," Richard said thoughtfully.
"Would I have my own shop?" Satoshi asked. "Not a stall? They won't allow me my own shop space here."
"Certainly," Astraea said. "There's plenty of room at the Old Capital."
Satoshi seemed to contemplate this. "Tell you what, Your Highness," he said. "I'll join you if you play garapon and win 50,000 Potch."
"Eh?!" the group exclaimed.
"Deal," Astraea said with a nod. "I fought a lot of monsters so I have some money I can spend. How much is it to play?"
"For 500 Potch you get one spin. You can spin three times for 1,000 Potch. And for 5,000 Potch you can have ten spins."
Astraea counted her money and it on the table. "Ten spins, please."
Satoshi took the 5,000 Potch and gestured to the garapon. "Whenever you're ready, Your Highness."
Astraea heard Sigrun groan in dismay, but Astraea took the lever and gave it several quick spins. The garapon wheel spun around a couple of times before it spat out a ball. A white ball.
"Ooh, tough luck," Satoshi groaned. He turned around and grabbed a random item from the shelf. "This is yours, though." He handed it to Astraea. Astraea saw that it was a book, labeled Old Book Volume VI. She quickly handed the book to Dawa and grabbed the lever again.
She got three more white balls in a row, and with them she won a Fish Badge, a Mega Medicine, and a recipe for ratatouille. Her brow rose when she saw the page but then she tucked it away.
"This is why I hate these games," Sigrun grumbled.
"They're a parasite in Potsfurt," Dawa agreed. "But I will support Her Majesty."
On the fifth spin Astraea finally had some luck; a blue ball came out. "That's 3,000 Potch!" Satoshi announced.
Astraea was relieved, but the relief didn't last. After that she got another white ball and won a Flaming Arrows rune scroll (Fajr makes these, right? Astraea wondered). On the seventh spin she got another blue ball and won another 3,000 Potch, but then on the eight and ninth spins she got two more white balls. She won another Mega Medicine and a dilapidated urn. She hesitated before the final, feeling her stomach sinking. She could understand why her sisters balked at this game, and how it could be addictive.
But I've come this far. I may as well see it all the way through.
"Last spin, Your Highness," Satoshi reminded her. "You need to win 44,000 more Potch to recruit me."
"She knows," Dawa said harshly.
Astraea saw no point in delaying the inevitable. She grabbed the lever again and gave it another spin. The wheel spun one last time…and spat out a yellow ball.
Satoshi's brow rose behind his sunglasses when he saw the ball. The group collectively sighed in relief and Sigrun gave Astraea a hug. "That's 100,000 Potch! You won 100,000 Potch, Astraea!"
"106,000 Potch to be precise," Satoshi said. He counted out the money for Astraea before he spoke again. "A deal's a deal. I'll join you."
"Thank you, Satoshi." Astraea shook his hand. "The only thing I ask is that if you think any of your patrons are becoming addicted to this game to please let me know."
"I will, Your Highness. Ah—Your Majesty," he corrected himself. "I'll need some time to pack up here, but I will join you later."
Astraea nodded. "I will see you later."
Satoshi was left to pack up his stall, and Astraea and the group then finally headed to Erment's shop. Erment and Gopal were still conversing inside when they entered, and Astraea's half-brothers jumped but immediately brightened when they saw Astraea. "Your Highness!" Erment exclaimed, waving.
"Is it true?!" Gopal said, hurrying over to them. "You challenged the King to Royal Combat?!"
"I did," Astraea said, looking between Erment and Gopal. "I'm also building my own Army to challenge him. The Reformation Army."
"Done," Erment said quickly.
"'Done'?" Sigrun asked.
"You're here to recruit us to your Army, aren't you?" Erment asked, nodding. "There's no way I can continue serving the King. If I have to throw my life down for a monarch, then it will be one of you."
"Her Majesty is challenging the King," Dawa said, resting a hand on Astraea's shoulder.
"Then I pledged myself to your service," Erment said. "Our King—that man who is our shared father—killed children and framed you. I cannot serve someone like that. I do not want to make armor for people who serve someone like that. I would much rather serve you, and make armor for your Army."
Astraea was overwhelmed with emotions. She hurried forward and gave Erment a hug. "Oh, thank you so much!"
"Give me a moment to pick up my shop," Erment said with a smile. "Then I'll happily set up shop wherever you want me to be."
"We're at the Old Capital."
"I've always wanted to see that. I'll be right back!" Erment hurried towards the back of the store.
Astraea looked to Gopal, but to her surprise she saw that her brother had a look of strain on his face. "What's wrong, Gopal?"
"I want to join you," Gopal said, his tone sad. "I really want to join you. But I cannot do that right now."
"Is something wrong?" Richard asked him. "Are you being threatened?"
Gopal shook his head. "There's nothing personally wrong with me, but the market. I've been monitoring wheat for a while and it's been selling terribly. Wheat is important to this country, and I feel I need to do more to help improve its standing in the market. I want to continue working here for now to help get wheat back up."
Astraea nodded sadly. "I'll help too. I'll buy and trade wheat to help it in the market, too."
Gopal smiled at her. "Thank you, Your Majesty. I appreciate it."
"Why can't he help the trade after joining us?" Ferdinand muttered.
"I guess it's a trader mentality," Richard muttered back. "I recall Prince Freyjadour had a difficult time recruiting a trader for the Loyalist Army because they wanted—ah—salt or something—to do better in the market before he would join."
"Seems like an unnecessary headache."
Astraea and Gopal thankfully didn't hear them. "I do have one question though, Gopal," Astraea said.
"Sure, what is it?"
"Do you have any milk?"
The theory about the Blinking Rune "looking out" for the Tenkai Star is my headcanon. It's the only explanation I could think of as to why—across five games—Viki couldn't teleport your party to certain towns (that were enemy-controlled) despite you having visited them at least once.
Recruits: Satoshi (99), Erment (55)