In the end, I followed a mixture of Saewulf’s advice and what my gut was telling me. I added 2 points to Constitution and 2 points to Presence. With my last point, I increased my Intelligence because I felt it was my strongest asset. I did not notice a change, but Saewulf said that was normal. Apparently, just like when I ascended, it would not take effect until I went to sleep that night. Saewulf and Rollo both knew that to be the case, but withheld that information from me after I touched the Godstone, so I would get a good night’s rest before the geas struck.

In deciding which Hex to take, that ended up being a much longer conversation. Saewulf taught me how to prompt a more definite description of anything in the ledger by focusing on it. The descriptions for the Hexes were:

Spoil Vegetation (Rank 1): Cause plants to wither in a five by five-foot square. Usable once a minute.

Haunt (Rank 1): Curse a person with minor auditory and visual hallucinations for 24 hours. This will make it difficult for the person to get restful sleep. Usable on one person at a time.

On the surface, spoiling vegetation didn’t seem too useful, however Saewulf convinced me otherwise. In the Ruinlands, remnants of Yagryzax the primordial life titan ran rampant in the forests. Before the Gods slew it, its favored creations had been plant abominations. In point of fact, there was once a race of short men called “Halflings” that Yagryzax turned into the plant-like wildlings we know today. Saewulf theorized that both the plant monsters in the Ruinlands, and the Wildlings in the kingdom would be vulnerable to that ability.

However, since I was going to Ashmere for the foreseeable future, we decided Haunt would be the best choice. By law of the Gods, no one could force you to disclose what deity was your patron or what abilities you had. This was because the Gods did not appreciate their agents being interrupted or suffering prejudice from rivals. It was a peacemaking measure that they all agreed upon. To hide the mark of my patron on my soul ledger, it was as simple as shutting a clasp to cover it. Further, Saewulf explained Ashmere would be full of politicking and rivalry; thus it would be in my best interest to keep Evil Eye as a hidden ace up my sleeve.

Haunt was attractive because most people would not realize I had cursed them. And from what Saewulf knew, Curses were an atypical form of magic. A simple detect magic spell, like the one I had, would not pick up Haunt. After I selected the hex, we tested it to be sure that the theory was correct. I cursed Rollo with Haunt and willed it away after detect magic failed to find it.

Unlike a hex, my spells were more complicated to use. Evil eye worked with just a look and a bit of intention, but detect magic and detect poison required that I use arcane gestures with words that sounded made up. The first time I tried it, I had to stop halfway through because I felt like an idiot. Casting the spells left me feeling mentally exhausted. Though Saewulf said that increasing my willpower would offset the fatigue. Both spells lasted around a minute, and I came around to appreciate them.

I mean, I had freaking magic!

Skills were the least interesting part to manage. Saewulf told me that Ashmere was both a traditional military academy and a scholarly institute. So, I just dumped both of my points in my already respectable Read and Write, bringing me up to an [A] ranked scholar!

I couldn’t wait to see how that worked out.

Once we finished experimenting and discussing what to do with the ledger, the guys and I had a nice breakfast at the inn. To Rollo’s amusement, Agatha, who had not been told about my ascendency, flirted with me shamelessly in front of Saewulf. It is a good thing Saewulf did not have my ability to hex, because that poor buxom bar wench would have had one terrible day.

Afterward, Saewulf helped me exchange the huge gold coin I had gotten from the noble in the carriage. Ironically, it was by giving back most of the money I had paid him.

After they convinced me that the best way to Ashmere was to take an arcanorail to Felbrigg, we headed to the station and I purchased a ticket for the following morning. The three of us chatted and walked the streets for a few hours before they had to leave.

Seeing them off was an emotional affair for me. They were both hard men, but I could tell that they still had an uncle-like affection for me. Especially Rollo, who promised me he and Saewulf would try to visit me in Ashmere soon.

To distract myself from being alone for the first time in months, I went shopping for new clothes. My ascendancy had not just changed my looks, but also my frame. It surprised me to learn that I was now only a few inches shorter than the two sellswords! In total, I had grown almost eight inches.

Shopping turned out to be almost a bigger bargain than I could handle, on account of the novel attention I was getting from women. Without the two sellswords distracting me from my environment with conversation, the full extent of my flawless face boon hit my awareness like an arcanowagon. Faces blushed, mouths gaped, and collisions into walls and other people happened with such frequency that I felt like a walking hex.

I would have felt flattered if I was not so terrified. For every other woman that waved herself after flushing, was an equally pissed off man wanting to run me through with a blade.

Eventually, I made it to a shop that Agatha had recommended, and began the laborious process of purchasing several additional sets of clothes. Fortunately, or unfortunately depending on how you look at it, the tailor that owned the shop was a man.

Later, after the man had taken my measurements, the most curious thing happened. I was browsing between the shelves of clothes he had for sale, and my eyes landed on an embroidered yellow and white floral dress. As soon as my eyes landed on it, I felt a sharp mental tug. I tried to ignore the sensation, but when I turned from the dress, another more insistent tug drew me back to it.

Perplexed about what to do, I pulled out my Soul Ledger to see if it would explain the phenomenon.

It did.

There on the second page I found a new quest.

Quests

Report to Ashmere Academy for the Ascended as per Ergentein Royal Law.

Purchase the yellow dress for Ingrid.

A vision of Ingrid, taking coin from Saewulf to sleep with me appeared in my mind. She looked toward the sad, ugly boy who would likely go off to die in the Ruinlands and felt sympathy. Ingrid had known what it was like to be undesirable; she had stood ignored in the shadow of her well-endowed sister her entire life. Ingrid resolved to give the boy a tumble because she thought a man should smile before he died. The money had not even mattered to her.

The images moved from Ingrid, showing me a lonely butcher on Maud Street. He was successful, but looked down on for his brutish looks. Despite his bullishness, he had a gentle heart. His mother had been the most important person in the world to him. He brought a yellow lily to her grave every year. It had been her favorite color.

I understood then what the ledger wanted. What Vascora wanted.

A few hours later, I returned to the inn to pack my clothes and give Ingrid the dress. I told her that tonight would be my last night in Harcourt and that I wanted to see her in something nice. My action confused her. The fresh face I had had firmly moved me into the category of “don’t even think about it” in her heart. And she knew I did not have romantic feelings for her. Nonetheless, she agreed.

I rested for a few more hours until evening, then headed over to the butcher’s shop on Maud Street.

Roald, the butcher, was just closing up shop when I walked up to him.

“Hey there!” I said, drawing a squinty look from him.

“Hello,” he said politely.

“I’m new to the city, and a bit lost. I was wondering if you could help me.”

“All right,” Roald said.

“I have an important meeting at an inn called the Horse’s bladder, do you think you could take me there?”

“Aye, I know the place, how about I give you directions?” Roald countered.

“If only!” I said, laughing and patting him on the back like I’d seen Saewulf do. “My mother says I could lose my hand trying to find my way to wipe my asshole.”

Roald gave an appreciative laugh. Mothers and crude humor did it for him.

“I promise not to inconvenience you too much, Sir. It’s just, this meeting is very important for my family business, and I’m already running late. I’ll buy you a few drinks! Promise!”

Roald sighed, but I knew I won him over.

Upon arrival at the bar, I sat with him at a table in the corner along with two big mugs of mead. He set to drinking his mead, and I chatted with him for a few minutes until I spotted Ingrid in the dress.

“Excuse me a moment, a mutual friend just showed up and I need to go speak with her. She may know where the person I am meeting is.”

Roald nodded, and I headed over to Ingrid.

“Ingrid! You look amazing, thank you for wearing it.”

Ingrid shrugged.

“So, I was wondering if you could do me a favor.” I started, diplomatically.

She gave me a hard look. I was not a virgin anymore and definitely did not need her sympathy.

“No! Nothing like that,” I said, holding up my hands in placation. “See that fellow over there,” I asked, pointing at Roald. “I was hoping you could keep him company for just a few minutes while I ran out on a quick errand for Saewulf. It was something I forgot he wanted me to do earlier. Anyway, that guy there is named Roald, and he’s a friend. I don’t want to be rude and just ditch him. Look, here are a few coins for drinks.” I handed her some money.

Ingrid agreed, and from the shadow of the stairwell I watched her go over and introduce herself, then sit next to him. Things soon looked to be well in hand, so I snuck up the steps and went to bed.

A mental tug from the Soul Ledger pulled my attention as soon as I shut my bedroom door. I opened the book and saw:

Quests

Report to Ashmere Academy for the Ascended as per Ergentein Royal Law.

Purchase the yellow dress for Ingrid.

+50 Essence