Aubert was in the second tavern I looked in, The Vagabond Rose, which meant that I didn’t need to take a chance on asking about the Deep Fiddle. He’d reverted to peacock mode, strutting in front of his friends and relatives. I was probably going to see these people again at the ball, so I made a note of their faces as I approached.

I wasn’t looking like myself of course. Blonde hair, again, but slightly darker than Katherine’s. Bigger boobs. Not that I had a problem with my current set, but I was after a certain impression here. At the last minute, I remembered I’d need a new name. Probably. He might not ask. Gwendolyn, Gwen for short, I decided.

It really was ridiculously easy. I didn’t even have to approach - the minute I wandered into his line of sight, he was all over me. Buying me a drink, bringing me over to his table, trying to impress me with his friends…

I lapped it all up of course. Smiling at him, laughing at his jokes, hanging off of his arm… It wasn’t long before he’d swept me away from the group and suggested a quick trip upstairs. I agreed of course. I was worried he’d think I was too easy, but he just seemed to count himself lucky. That all changed once we had some privacy, of course.

“I thought I told you never to let me catch you wearing that again,” I said, turning off the [Disguise].

“Mother of a whore!” he swore, snatching his hand away from my décolletage. “Must you torment me everywhere I go?”

“I needed to meet with you secretly,” I said, sitting on the bed and adjusting my clothing. I’d been pawed at rather a lot. “Its not my fault this was the quickest and easiest way.”

“Was it, or was it just the most amusing?”

“Tomato, tomato,” I said. Neither pronunciation was a word in their language, so it didn’t really help. “Now that you’ve finished complaining, I need to tell you a few things.”

I waited while he got himself under control. I liked this. Alone in a room with a man much stronger than me, but I was in control.

“First of all, did you know your cousin is plotting against your father?”

“Which one?” Aubert asked sourly.

“Guillaume,” I said.

“You’re wrong,” he said scornfully. “We’ve been close since we were young - practically brothers.”

“Oh? Then why isn’t he downstairs?” I asked.

“He’s never liked this sort of thing,” he said dismissively. “He’s always studying at night.”

“Hmm.” You couldn’t learn Skills from books (well, not unless you had research) but you could pick up a lot of information that wasn’t covered by a skill. “Studying what?”

“Different things. Heraldry, History, crop yields for the different Duchies. I don’t know.”

“Things useful for a leader?” I wondered. “Is he due to inherit anything?”

“No, his father’s already dead. He was…” Aubert hesitated for the first time, “the previous Count.”

“Why didn’t he inherit?” I asked, starting to see where this was going.

“It was ten years ago… we were… he was too young. There was talk of a Regency, but the King stepped in, awarded the title to my father.”

“Scratch a noble, find a disputed inheritance,” I said wryly. "Did you know he has a townhouse in the city?”

“He doesn’t, he lives in the castle. Uncle Ansel’s wife and children are all being provided for by my father.”

“Hmm. Well I’m not here to convince you. Its better that you keep treating him the same way you always have.”

“You can’t just throw out an accusation like that!”

“Can’t I?” I asked. “If you must know, he came around looking to see if I could be used against your father in an Intrigue. My skill picked up on it, he’s not very good with [Intrigue].”

“That's not even close to proof.”

“Quite. So don’t do anything about it.” I said. “What you are going to do, is make sure he doesn’t find out that we’re working together.”

He snorted. “That's not how I’d put it.”

“Regardless of how you put it, he can’t find out.” I said. “I’m going to try and see if I can get in on what he’s planning, but it won’t work if he knows I’m working for your father. So tell your father that, and maybe arrange to be heard around the castle saying some less than complimentary things about me.

“I might be able to manage that,” he said sarcastically.

“I have full confidence in your acting ability,” I replied. “Now, only contact me at my old house, I’ll make sure to approach that in disguise from now on. Have you spoken with your father about the mission?”

“Yes, I-“ he started, but I held up my hand.

“Save it for when we’re all together,” I said. “But tell your father this. The rumour of the demon sighting that he’s been trying to suppress is all over the castle, and its only a matter of time before it gets into the city.”

“What! but that's-“

“Bad news, I know.” I interrupted. “Keep your father in the loop, and if wants us to change what we’re doing you can let us know tomorrow.”

“Loop?” he asked confused.

“Keep your father informed.”

“…Could have said that the first time,” he muttered, loudly enough for me to hear.

“Right!” I said brightly. “That should be everything. I’ll go down invisible, you stay up here long enough to convince everyone you’re performing adequately.”

“Gods, am I going to have to check if every woman I meet from now on is actually you?”

“You underestimate my ability to impersonate women you already know,” I said, grinning. “Rest assured, if it happens again, it will be for a good reason.”

The next morning, I made omelettes. Fluffy ones, stuffed with ham and cheese. I had to conjure a whisk instead of the bundle of sticks Elodie suggested, but frypans worked much the same. Toast was a bit of struggle, but I conjured a wire frame to hold the bread over the fire, which actually worked better than the real thing. It couldn’t get hot, so Elodie didn’t have to worry about being burned.

She worried about everything else, mostly about me doing her job.

“Its not right, you making a meal for me, Miss Kandis,” she complained. “And… I’m not sure I’ve ever seen anyone cook eggs that way.”

“Its fine, Elodie,” I reassured her. “The toast is done, right?” I slid the finished omelette onto her toast. “Try this, while I finish mine.”

Suspiciously, Elodie took forkful of the eggs and put it in her mouth.

Competency displayed with [Cook], Level 2 awarded

For gaining skill levels you have been awarded 2 XP

Ah, been a while since I got one of those, I thought, feeling smug. Omelettes were simple enough, but I’d had the feeling that the prep work involved would elevate it beyond a level 1 skill.

With the System’s approval, I didn’t really need to know what Elodie thought, but its aways nice to see someone enjoy your cooking.

“This is delicious!” she exclaimed.

“Glad you liked it,” I said, smiling, and returned to making my own meal. As always, having the skill made everything easier. It wasn’t long before we were both seated at the kitchen table, enjoying our omelettes. They really were good - better than I remembered making. Better ingredients? Skill shenanigans? I didn’t know, I just enjoyed the results.

Now I just needed coffee. Tea just wasn’t the same. Still it wasn’t a bad way to finish off breakfast. I relaxed, and let Elodie reminded me of what I had to do today.

“Guildmaster Langelier said he was free this morning, if you wanted to show him your enchantment,”

“I should be able to get to that before the team meeting,” I mused. “That's all I’ve got scheduled, right?”

“That I know of,” Elodie agreed. “Did… you want to go looking for orphans today?”

“No, I think you’re right about the dangers of that. Put out the word around the guild kids, see if anyone wants to sign up.”

This was about getting some minions. Recruiting street urchins did have long tradition behind it, going back to Sherlock Holmes, but Elodie had given me a different suggestion.

The Guild took care of its own. To my surprise, that included the children of deceased guild members. They were raised in something like an orphanage, apprenticed to established members and generally went on to become smiths themselves. Generally. There were always some that weren’t suited, or didn’t want to become smiths. They… were on their own. At a certain point, they were turfed out of the orphanage, and if they hadn’t secured a line on a profession, then they turned to thievery or adventuring.

Elodie thought that there were at least some kids on the cusp of that transition that would be looking for a way out. She rated them as far more trustworthy than someone I picked off the street. That was partly guild prejudice, sure, but it worked both ways. These kids would have been raised in the guild, so as a senior member, they’d look up to me.

Elodie knew them, a little, as she was in something of the same boat. She wasn’t orphaned, but she wasn’t planning on becoming a smith. Her parents had arranged different educational opportunities for her, which was partly how she had ended up here.

I got ready for the day and headed off to see Gustave.

“And what have you brought me today, my dear?” he asked, once the pleasantries were out of the way. He had a hopeful look on his face.

“I was wondering if there was a market for enchantments that weren’t combat related,” I said, taking out my enchanted locket. I opened it and the sweet strains of Pachelbel's Canon filled the room.

Gustave sat totally still while the music played. I’d gone with classical - even though I didn’t know much about it - because it didn’t have singing. And I because I wasn’t sure this world was ready for Taylor Swift. Even so, orchestral music was a huge step from what Gustave would be used to. I didn’t know if they had orchestras in the capital, but I was fairly sure they didn’t here.

“What… is this music?” he asked finally, as it came to an end.

“By a man called Pachelbel - its something I heard when I was younger.” I said. I wasn’t lying either, Dad had played this incessantly when I was a kid.

“Is there more by this man?”

“Not that I remember?” I said uncertainly. “I know some songs that are a similar type of music.”

“It just plays this one song, correct?” he asked. He closed and opened the locket to start the song again.

“Yes, and not indefinitely. You can get 2 plays from a full charge, but then you have to let it recharge or fill the mana crystal manually. I can play around with those numbers, but it will change the costs.” I handed over a sheet of paper with my estimates for the costs of different options. “The same goes for one that plays multiple tunes, it will almost double the cost”

“The nobles will go mad for this,” he predicted, grinning with greed. “Though I don’t imagine the Bards will like losing income.”

“They might be interested in a deal. Get their own songs recorded and distributed to a wider audience.”

“Perhaps, we’d have to cut them in though,” he frowned at the thought. “Music like this - while it may eventually fall out of favour, right now it’s something new.”

He looked at me suddenly. “You should show it off at the Autumn Ball.”

“Where did you hear that? Does everybody know I’m attending already?”

He laughed. “Elodie has been telling anyone in the Guild who will stand still long enough. She’s very exited about attending.”

I made a face. “I don’t want to attract that much attention at the Ball,” I said. “Aren’t you invited?”

“I normally plead age,” he said. “Balls aren’t for old money-grubbers like myself.”

“You’re right that it would be an opportunity, but I think it would look better if you were to show it off. After all, I’ll be selling through the Guild, no?”

“True…” he mused. “If you were to demonstrate it, they would no doubt come straight to you, try to cut us out..”

“We wouldn’t want that,” I agreed.

“Well, I suppose I should thank you for your consideration, even though it will mean more work than I’m accustomed to.” he said grumpily.

“We must all make sacrifices for profit,” I said, amused.

“Very well, at least my wife will be pleased.”