Published at 16th of February 2024 2:24 pm

Chapter 2.38 Singhs Of The Round Table

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A carriage arrived at Ratra’s Knightly Brews precisely at the sixth bell. Its driver knocked on the door and informed Nox that he’d happily wait however long was necessary. Despite the ‘we stick to our own attitude’ Swati had a local in her employ. Nox wasn’t sure why the discovery surprised him as much as it did.

After foot traffic slowed down enough, he had left Hilda, Emily, and Kishan in charge of running the store. He and Aisha worked together to develop an ointment that would fulfill Swati’s needs. It was a reasonably simple project. They used the general recipe for Daksinthani skin types and added elements of a healing concotion to it. The resulting product took just over an hour to brew. It utilized life essence to revitalize damaged skin before nourishing, moisturizing, and safe guarding.

Aisha divided the concoction between six bottles and assembled a crate of assorted cosmetics for Daksinthani skin. They used the miniature sample bottles, ensuring each container had enough for no more than a couple of uses. The glass makers had branded their creations with the shop’s insignia—a knight’s helm and Nox’s last name, guaranteeing brand recognition.

When Nox returned to the apartment to bathe and dress, he found Aria pouring over several contracts and a ledger. Her air appeared damp, and the air smelled of lavender and the personalized moisturizing ointment Nox had brewed for her. “What’re you working on?” Nox asked.

“I had an idea to help out Father,” she replied, sparing him a glance. He scanned the papers in front of her as he spoke.“The farms and orchards have more or less recovered from the myconid attack and the blight. But we don’t have enough people to run them.”

“Let me guess. You’re going to offer work contracts and signing bonuses to able-bodied refugees? It's a good idea if the barony’s treasury can afford it. Have you thought about transport?”

“Not yet. I had a little more in mind. If I just go after the able-bodied, we’re going to end up with an influx of young-to-middle-aged men, creating a gender imbalance. The contract will target displaced families or individuals with children.”

“Smart.” Nox kneeled next to the desk and studied a draft contract. Families would get a small patch of land, seeds for sowing, building materials, and a small amount of gold. She wasn’t just looking for farmers or herders but skilled workers like artisans and teachers, too. All new residents of the land would need to start paying taxes from the third quarter of their second year. The numbers began low before slowly escalating, but they didn’t appear exploitative. “Do you plan to build new villages?”

Aria nodded. “Far too many died because of the myconids, and more fled while you fought them. I’m hoping to lure them back or tempt former neighbors. The myconids had no interest in razing settlements, so old towns and villages are mostly intact. Residents might need to rebuild defensive structures and doors but much not else.”

“Have you considered doing something with the urchins?” Nox asked. “I swear I see new kids on the streets every day. Alex’s gang is ever-growing, too. They can help pick fruit in the orchards learn trades; the smarter ones might even want an education. They won’t be able to start villages and will need caretakers, but it's worth considering, don’t you think.”

“Harder said than done.” Aria rifled through the papers in front of her and retrieved an incredibly thick contract. She handed it to Nox. “I've been working on it. Things are a lot more challenging with children. You can’t just give them contracts, put them on carts or airships, and ferry them across the continent. All entities with such plans must petition the city, put forward solid plans, show evidence of prepared infrastructure, and much more. It's something I’m considering for sure.”

“If there is any way I can help—”

“You can help yourself by not keeping your hosts waiting longer than necessary. This is a part of your job as a knight and an alchemist.” Aria kissed Nox and then pushed him playfully. “Go.”

Much to Nox’s surprise, the carriage didn’t take him to the Nobles Quarter. Instead, it traveled along the central road running through the center of the Market Ring. The vehicle took him to a part of the section directly opposite from where Ratra’s Knightly Brew sat. It was in a much nicer neighborhood with shops and eateries better polished and maintained than Nox’s store.

It looked like an area that almost exclusively served the city’s rich and powerful. Expensive wood and marble accents, gold or silver filigree, and similar opulent decorations marked the storefronts. Nox spotted even greater grandeur through the windows. All used expensive mana lamps for illumination and artificer-made devices hung from the walls.

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Staff working in the local eateries wore much nicer clothes than what Nox usually saw—having visited some of them while with Annabelle, Nox was familiar with their clientele and prices. Their menu included several ingredients not available locally. In fact, his mother’s trade routes were responsible for ferrying them around the continent. It was all much too expensive for Nox’s current means.

Big and established names like Gupta Alchemists, Morgana’s Arcane Emporium, and Artemis Artificers had stores on the street where the carriage stopped. The driver opened the vessel’s door for Nox and waved him toward the Round Table. Nox had heard of the organization. It was a high-end private club catering to the city’s elite. The Oakhearts had a membership.

“Harin rented out the Round Table for an intimate gathering?” Nox asked, taken aback. He expected the man to come from an affluent family but didn’t think he was rich enough for such a feat.

“The Singhs own the Round Table,” the carriage driver replied. He nodded at the attached buildings. “They’re all a part of the family’s estate.” The man walked to a smaller doorway to the left of the private club’s side entrance. “Please follow the hallway, bearing left, and then take the first flight of stairs you encounter. You’ll find Master Harin and his guests in his suite on the first and second floors.”

The entrance and hallway felt like a service passage. Doors to his left connected to giant kitchens, dressing rooms, staff lounges, and staff restrooms. Meanwhile, the doorways to the left were heavier, thicker, and decorated with detailed carvings. Nox saw elegant dining areas, bars, gambling rooms, and even a grand dance floor. Distracted by the grandeur and the people within, he followed the hallway, taking a right instead of a left. After five minutes of walking, he was surprised to find an indoor menagerie, a herb garden with artificial writing, an artificing workshop, and an alchemist’s laboratory with high-end equipment that rivaled the Trade Empire’s artisan workshops.

Unable to help himself, Nox used Mage Hand to unlock the door from the inside and let himself inspect the functioning workstations. Complex spellscripts automated the processes, minimizing the need for human interaction. Nox identified the scents and spellforms. Healing, mana recovery, Sniper’s Eye, and Feline Grace concoctions brewed in the many cauldrons around the laboratory. Nox saw a couple of cosmetic spellforms that starkly differed from his own.

“Why in Yggdrasil’s name is he buying from me if he has all of this?” Nox whispered to himself. He imagined whether patronizing Ratra’s Knightly Brews was all a ploy to win his favor and lure him into their social circle. After convincing himself that it was just professional curiosity, he sampled their empowering brews. He couldn't help but grin when he discovered it was inferior to what Ratra's Knightly Brews sold.

Before retreating, Nox closely studied their spell circles and the open recipe books. The Sigil of the Artisan’s upgrade, Artisan’s Library, filed the information away for later. He almost felt bad for stealing another artisan’s intellectual property, but it was nothing new, and his work was more efficient and potent. However, Nox wanted to make comparisons and specifically study the automation scripts where they were significantly ahead of him. Mage Hand allowed Nox to move things around without leaving any marks—the natural oils in one's skin could always react to any unique brew or residue on the work surfaces and tomes.

Currently, all prominent alchemists in the city were his enemy. He didn’t know whether the Singhs had their own alchemy business or only brewed for their house’s uses. Nox justified his actions by telling himself that his marks weren’t particularly nice people—about his friends, at least. He had no plans to target Singh’s business either. His interests were primarily academic.

The jingle of keys from the far side of the laboratory interrupted Nox’s exploration. He fled the way he had come just as a door opened on the other side of the laboratory. No one pursued him, suggesting his trespass had gone unnoticed. While retreating, Nox realized not locking the door behind him would eventually reveal someone had broken in and prodded around. He hoped the time wouldn’t come until the following morning.

Eventually, the hallway took him back to the point Nox recognized. Retracing his steps took him back to where he took a wrong turn. After passing private rooms filled with illicit, twisted, sexual scenes, Nox found the stairs.

The first floor resembled the private club’s interior more than the service rooms. Swati had understated the event's size. Nox estimated at least fifty Daksinsthani individuals of all ages socialized in the music-filled lounge and adjoining rooms. Uniformed individuals, carrying elegant finger food and tall glasses of colorful beverages, filtered through them. The party starkly differed from those he had ever attended with Annabelle or Aria. The Singh’s party had colorful, heavily bejeweled, scantily clad dancers and food he had never seen before. Swati found him before he could indulge in any of the entertainment or offerings.

“I was worried you weren’t going to come!” She exclaimed. Swati clicked her fingers, and a servant rushed to meet them. The man took the crates off Nox and carried them to a side room. Swati took Nox’s arm as they followed. “I’ve been keeping my distance from the others so they don’t see the travesty that is my skin.”

“You look great,” Nox stated. “Looks like your magic is already doing most of the work.”

“Flattery will get you everywhere, Sir Nox Ratra,” she said, batting her long eyelashes. “I see you got plenty of samples to steal clients from the Guptas, too. Some of them are in attendance tonight. I doubt they’ll appreciate it.”

“Should I have not bought this much? I don’t want to cause a scene—”

“Nonsense.” Swati laughed. The servant left them alone in what looked like a bedroom. “Given their drinking rate, I doubt they’ll care. Now, help me get my gown off so I can slather myself. You have no idea how itchy the delve left me.”

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