The Exarch & the Errand Girl Ch. 06

The compliment occupied Rouran's thoughts all the way to Master Quellar's workshop. She couldn't think of why it should matter to her, but it did. Sergeant Wair made a great deal of pleasant small talk on their way, and even shared a joke or two when they passed under the great relief of Kiera the Wilder calling down lightning and slaying dragons that had Rouran in stitches, though the Sergeant was quick to not take any credit for their invention. From time to time, she thought she caught him staring at her, usually when she was busy staring at him.

All too soon, the smell of furnaces and molten metal filled the air. A few wrong turns and asking for directions took them to Master Quellar's shop.

The building itself, though not the forge, was clearly meant to receive the upper crust of Vashili society, by Rouran's reckoning. She'd never seen such finery for a merchant. A few tapestries hung on the walls, most of them depicting a smith of some talent crafting a legendary weapon for various people. Yvain told her that one picture was the crafting of the vai Banda hammer, which the House founder had wielded during the battle at which the Five Nobles had been created. Rouran nodded, though she largely didn't care.

"What can I do for you and your...wife?...Sergeant?" asked an older man who entered. He looked like a strong man in disrepair, his muscles hanging from him, though obviously there. He was completely bald and clean shaven, and it took Rouran a moment to realize that he had no eyebrows as well.

"Are you Master Quellar?" asked Yvain.

"I am, Sergeant."

"I'm not his wife," said Rouran.

There was a moment as Master Quellar absorbed this information.

"Ah," he said.

"I'm Lord Ked's personal clerk," explained Rouran.

"Ah!" exclaimed Master Quellar. His face alighted with excitement. "And what would the Exarch like today? I would greatly love to work with his jade armor again. I was given the duty when his father, Lord Raeph, passed it on to him. It is one of the highlights of my career. Dragon jade is an absolute pleasure to work with. I have been thinking, these decades since, and I believe I could carve such intricate designs in it, my skill has so improved, that you would not even be able to tell it was metal at all."

"Lord Ked did not send me here to commission a piece," said Rouran.

"Ah?" asked Master Quellar, the tone disappointed and deflated. "What have you come for?"

"It is about dragon jade, Master Quellar," said Yvain. He took out the golden dagger hilt and placed it on the counter in front of the smith. "But not the vai Ullan armor."

"This is gold," said Master Quellar.

"We know that it held a dragon jade blade, though," said Yvain. He turned it over, offering it to the smith so that the handle of the hilt pointed out. "It bears your maker's mark."

Quellar held up the hilt, examining it. He moved to stand under a lamp, lifting the hilt so that the light caught it. He frowned, the expression cutting deep across his face.

"This is my mark," he said. "But this is not my work."

"No?" asked Yvain. "Do you make it a habit of letting others use your mark?"

"No, of course not," said Quellar, annoyed by even the suggestion. "I do make sure that my apprentices, however, make sure to indicate that it is my workshop their efforts have come from."

"So this is one of your apprentice's marks?" asked Rouran.

"It's possible," said Quellar.

"Master Quellar, I don't mean to be indelicate," said Rouran. "A guilty man might well pawn his guilt off on others. An apprentice would be just such a tempting person to hold their master's guilt."

"I do not pass any guilt on, Mistress Metil," said Quellar, frowning deeply. "I do not offer my apprentices lightly, and would not offer them at all, did I not have a reason to connect them. It came to me as I saw this piece."

"What reason is that?" asked Yvain.

"My apprentice, Nywell, disappeared a few days ago. I believe this weapon was crafted by him."

"Master Quellar, again, I mean no offense, but a disappearing apprentice..."

"Young lady," snapped the master smith. "I do not intend to mean you any offense, but if you are accusing me of something, you have a sergeant of the Guard with you. Let him arrest me for it, and I shall take my chances in court."

"She is acting in your interest, Master Quellar," said Yvain. Rouran was surprised by the sharpness of his tone. Quellar had annoyed her, but she was not expecting that he would've irritated Sergeant Wair as well. "She is right. We are not accusing you of a thing, but you are shifting the blame as though we have."

Quellar seemed suitably cowed.

"I'm simply trying to explain, Sergeant," he said. "Nywell has been one of my most diligent apprentices for nearly three years now. He is particularly talented at bladed weapons, like daggers and swords. And as I've said, he's disappeared. Just a day or two before the attack in the square. It had never occurred to me to connect the two until just this moment. A Sorcerer slaughtered, and now a hilt bearing my mark recovered from the scene. Nywell seems like the likely man."

"Do you remember him making this knife hilt?"

"I do not," said Quellar, shaking his head, his expression almost forlorn that he had no recollection of it.

"He must have made it here, though," said Rouran. "It bears your mark."

"Yes. He would have made sure to mark it. I would have certainly noticed a weapon that did not bear it."

"Surely you must have noticed a weapon made of dragon jade," said Yvain.

"After a certain point in their apprenticeships, I stop checking the quality of the blades except to keep them on their toes," said Quellar. "I would never let my mark be put on an inferior blade, so anything marked with my mark I know to be the work of a skilled smith that I have trained. I hardly ever checked Nywell's work. There would have been nothing to be gained from it."

"So you had no idea that he crafted this weapon? What did you think he was making?" asked Rouran.

"My dear lady, I believed he was working on commissions for my noble clientele. In just these few days, I have been trying to make sense of what orders he might have been supposed to be working on."

"What orders was he working on?" asked Yvain.

"Well, in all honesty—daggers," said Master Quellar, sheepishly. "He had a large commission for Tau vai Keller."

"For what?"

"I'm not quite sure," said Quellar. "To be honest, I'm not sure that the commission was so large. Nywell took it himself. I did not review it in any serious capacity. Sir Tau, however, dropped by the workshop a number of times in order to review its progress. He was very insistent."

"What was the order?"

"Well, it says here a sword and five daggers. I'm unsure where the pieces are, although from what I recall of Nywell, he should've been able to produce such a quantity in the weeks since it was ordered. In Vash's name, I'm quite worried about it. I'm expecting Sir Tau to arrive tomorrow, and I have no idea what sort of work Nywell did on it. I am fast coming to the conclusion that he did nothing. My reputation may suffer greatly."

"And a Sorcerer is dead," said Yvain.

"Yes," said Master Quellar. "Yes, I am sorry, I quite agree."

"Is there anything more you can tell us? Where does Nywell live?" asked Yvain.

"He used to live above the shop. But now I don't know where he is."

"What about his folk?"

"His mother used to live in the Cliff District, but she passed a year or two ago," said Quellar.

"Thank you, Master Quellar," said Yvain. "If you remember anything else of importance, please let us know at the Guard's headquarters on the Hill."

"Of course, Sergeant. I am sorry I am not of much help."

"On the contrary, you've been very valuable to us," said Yvain. "Keep yourself safe."

Yvain and the master smith shook hands, and then Rouran offered hers, the smith taking it in turn. The two of them exited the shop, and Rouran watched as the Sergeant seemed to weigh an idea in his mind, then took off back towards the hill. She stepped quickly to keep up with him.

"Where are we going now?" she asked.

"The vai Keller estate. Everything's beginning to point in that direction."

"You're just going to walk up and accuse Cail vai Keller's nephew of funding a plot to destroy the Guild?" asked Rouran.

"Well..." said Yvain. He paused. "Well, not something so direct as that. But Lord Cail is known to be a friend to the Guild. I was thinking, perhaps, that he might be persuaded to apply pressure to his nephew."

"So you want Cail vai Keller to turn his nephew in for funding a plot to destroy the Guild. And your evidence is that an apprentice smith that Sir Tau knew has disappeared after producing the dragon jade blade."

"You wanted me to arrest a fruit seller the other day!" protested Yvain.

"I wanted you to hold a woman who had every likelihood of disappearing into the vast crowd of people in this city. And who I'm sure already has disappeared," said Rouran. "Sir Tau is unlikely to be going anywhere. Even if he is the source of the plot against the Guild, then it's doubtful he'll just uproot stakes and go. People aren't killing Sorcerers because they're fascinated with the idea of it, and then they'll move on. They're killing Sorcerers to overthrow the Guild. If there's a noble at the end of this road, they're here for the long haul."

"So what would you suggest?"

"Let's go see Elina vai Tischer," said Rouran.

"Lady Elina has nothing to do with this investigation!" said Yvain.

"She has something to do with Sir Tau," said Rouran.

"What?" asked Yvain, not following.

"Well, since Lady Kiera abandoned Sir Tau in the middle of their wedding, Lady Elina has been spending her time with Sir Tau," said Rouran. "Do you not keep up with the gossip among the Five Noble Families? I know it, and I'm not even Vashili."

"You're the Exarch's clerk."

"Oh, Lord Ked doesn't care about that, except in a very removed way," said Rouran.

"He'd certainly never pass it on. He'd be hoping to turn a blind eye, in case Lady Kiera came to her senses and returned to marry Sir Tau."

"Lord Ked's not a dumb man," said Yvain. "Does he really think that might happen?"

"No, Lord Ked's not a dumb man," agreed Rouran. "So he doesn't think it might happen, but he still hopes. Beyond which, if she does ever return, he believes he might convince her to do so."

"And, in the meanwhile, Sir Tau sees Lady Elina. So what?"

"So, Lady Elina might be able to tell us about Sir Tau's activities without immediately alerting him to our investigation. Go at it sideways, like you said with Lord Islan."

"That could work," agreed Yvain. He glanced at Rouran. "As long as you don't make a muck of it again."

"I barely made a muck of it, as you say, last time. Lord Islan answered all our questions in full. And turned us onto Master Quellar."

"And who knows how helpful he'd have been if he hadn't felt like he'd been accused of being anti-Guild."

"He is anti-Guild. He said as much himself. I don't see why everyone's pretending like it's something rude to observe," said Rouran.

Yvain shook his head.

"You truly aren't Vashili," he said. "There's certain proprieties to follow with the Five Noble Families."

"Well, let's go and see how much propriety Lady Elina has."

***

"Lady Elina is currently bathing," a servant told them, at the vai Tischer estate. "I'm afraid she won't be receiving visitors."

"Could you ask her, madam, to cut her bath short if possible?" asked Yvain. "It's a matter of great importance. To do with Sorcerer Arthir."

"Sorcerer Arthir? The one that was killed in the market?"

"Yes," said Rouran. "And, if you could tell her that it's Sergeant Wair and Rouran Metil to see her, she might be more amenable to having her bath interrupted."

Lady Elina's attendant looked uncertain, hesitating to take any action.

"I thought it was just horrible that the Sorcerer was killed like that," she said.

"We certainly agree, madam," said Yvain.

"I cannot see how Vash would approve," the servant added.

"I don't think that she would," said Yvain.

"They keep a proper, Guild-fearing, Vash-loving house, the vai Tischers," said the woman. "Lady Elina's mother before her used to visit the temple twice a day. She even had a shrine put in the gardens. I pray there, sometimes, when I don't have a duty. I prayed the day I learned about Sorcerer Arthir."

"Vash has surely sent us to you," said Rouran.

"I will ask Lady Elina if she'll see you. You may have to wait until she's done bathing, all the same. It's been sacrosanct since she was a young woman."

The woman's face blanched.

"She's still a young woman, of course, you know."

"We know," assured Rouran.

"If you'll go speak to her, madam," said Yvain.

"Yes, of course, Sergeant. If you'll just wait here and don't—" the woman stopped and laughed. "I was going to say 'don't touch anything,' but you're a Guard, I suppose I can trust you not to steal anything."

Yvain laughed himself, although Rouran felt like it came out a little forced. "You can indeed, madam."

The servant disappeared up the hall, leaving Rouran and Yvain alone in the foyer.

"She seemed a bit on edge," said Rouran.

"Something about the piety of it, I think," said Yvain. "It cuts two ways, in my experience. Either you have no fear because Vash is watching out for you, or you have all the fear because Vash's decisions are ineffable."

"Do you believe in Vash?" asked Rouran.

"I do," said Yvain. "Not as much as when I was a child, perhaps. It seemed simpler back then. But, in that I believe the Sky Dragon is a powerful force for good, I do believe in her. You?"

"I liked the stories," said Rouran. "I loved the stories, actually. I suppose that's the problem with fishing villages, is that we don't have enough going on. But then my village was destroyed by the Dragon Clans, and now I'm not so sure."

Rouran thought Yvain was about to say something, when the servant returned.

"Lady Elina has consented to speak with you, although I'm afraid she will not be moved from her bath. You will have to attend her. Is that acceptable?"

Rouran started a little, although when she saw how Yvain's face had blanched, she almost burst out laughing.

"Very much, madam," she said. "Not our place to question the nobility, after all."

She figured it wasn't the worst thing in the world. Perhaps a little immodest, but nothing she hadn't seen before. Judging from Yvain's tryst with Sorcerer Siara, nothing he hadn't seen before either. She moved to follow the servant back down the hall, and Yvain followed along reluctantly behind her.

"Lady Elina, Rouran Metil and Sergeant Yvain Wair," said the woman, as they entered.

Lady Elina was seated in a small circle cut into the floor, evidently some sort of bath. All that could be seen, at least from the doorway, was her hair, which had become matted down by the water. It was dark, and had been cropped tight on the sides, in emulation of the Dragon Clan hairstyles, conforming to the new trend in the city after the end of the war and the integration of the Clans.

"Thank you, Thel," said Elina. "You may go."

The woman nodded, though Lady Elina did not turn around to see it, and slipped out of the room, sealing the door shut behind them.

Elina stood up and turned around

Rouran was wrong about the Lady Elina's body being nothing she hadn't seen before. She was, naturally, quite woman shaped, which was unremarkable. But everything else about her struck Rouran as absolute perfection. She had a tattoo of morning glories that ran from her right shoulder, down her spine to her waist, where it curved around her hip and ended just above her pussy, which had been shaved bare. Her generous breasts sat high and perky on her chest, above a gloriously flat stomach and firm, heart shaped bottom.

For a moment, Rouran loathed her, then suddenly she was loathing herself, the voice in her head whispering that she was a disgusting troll compared to Elina. She rolled a bit of her braid around her fist, then let it come undone.

"Rouran! How lovely of you to come visit," said Elina. She waved from the bath.

"Lady Elina, I appreciate you making time for us," said Rouran.

"Oh, of course. I'd leave the bath, but I apologize, it's far too luxurious to do so. Some very clever forebear built it over a hot spring."

"It's perfectly all right, my Lady," said Rouran. "Sergeant Wair and I are happy to meet with you on your own terms. Isn't that right, Sergeant Wair?"

Rouran looked over at Yvain. The Guard's gaze was locked on Lady Elina's nude form, his face frozen with his mouth open. Rouran would've grinned at him, had she seen it in some other context, but in this case, Yvain's silence was quite rude. She coughed.

"Y-yes," managed Yvain. Rouran would've thought that bedding a Sorcerer would've been the apex of the man's sexual thrills, but apparently he was rendered into simple one-word answers just by the naked noble before him. Although Rouran did have to admit that Elina was something else entirely.

Yvain caught Rouran's stare, his eyebrows raising as he saw her impatience with him. He averted his gaze to the floor.

"Lady Elina, we've come on a rather delicate matter," he said.

"I should think so," said Elina. "The murder of a Sorcerer couldn't be anything other than delicate. What can I do for you two?"

"Well, it's not simply the death of Sorcerer Arthir that makes this delicate," said Yvain. "I understand that you and Sir Tau vai Keller have been...um...engaged? In a personal capacity?"

"I'm afraid not. Sir Tau is, of course, engaged to Lady Kiera vai Ullan."

"That's not what we mean," said Rouran.

"Of course it's not. I'm not a fool, Rouran," said Elina. "But I fail to see how it should be any business of yours who I'm sleeping with."

"We wish to know, Lady Elina," said Rouran, her voice falling to an overly patient tone, as though she were almost apologetic that it had to be asked. "If you have seen any behavior from Sir Tau that has given you a cause for alarm."

"Such as?"

"Such as anything," said Yvain, finding his voice. "I apologize, Lady vai Tischer, but your house has been well known as supporters of the Guild. We are trying to support the Guild now, and in searching for the person or persons who planned the murder of Sorcerer Arthir we have been led to Sir Tau. And thus to you."

"Have you inquired with Sir Tau directly?" asked Lady Elina. "We keep each other's bed, not each other's confidence."

"We have not," said Yvain. "We were concerned that, if he was involved, he would be hostile to us."

"But you were not concerned that I might be hostile to someone hostile to Sir Tau? If he is involved with such a plot, why wouldn't I also be implicated?"

"Because I do not believe you want to bring down the Guild, Lady Elina," said Rouran.

Elina laughed.

"I'm being vouched for by a Joian fisherwoman on my loyalty to Tia Vashil, am I?"

"I'm afraid so," said Rouran.

Elina looked at her, then at Yvain. Rouran caught the glance, the predatory, hungry stare in Elina's eyes, and craned to look at the Guard. His gaze had lifted from the floor, although not all the way up to Elina directly, instead focusing somewhere just above the surface of the water where she sat.

"I have always been a friend to the Guild," said Elina. "My family has for generations. We have also been friends to the Guard, for just as long."

Her eyes remained fixed on Yvain, and Rouran watched as his gaze lifted up to meet hers, flirting with her stare for a moment, until it was snared in the pools of her pupils, before quickly dropping right to the floor.

"Rouran Metil, are you and this man...'engaged personally?'" asked Elina.