“I welcome you, your Highness and your companion as well, to my humble abode,” mayor Orson Lytton greeted them, while bending down low. The stout man in gaudy clothing received Felicity and Eulisses personally as soon as the two of them went off the carriage.

“Thank you for your warm welcome, Mayor Lytton,” the princess replied with impeccable etiquette, while Eulisses gave a courteous nod remaining silent, not wanting to draw more attention than necessary to himself. His mind was still occupied with his most recent slip of control and his pessimistic side feared for the worst and what implications that would cast. Have I lost my drive? No, I don’t think so. But I’m not really working towards my goal right now, am I? Far too easily being swept along the princess and her quest, what about my own?

His musings were interrupted by the mayor who flourished his hands and gestured inside, “May I propose we retreat to my parlour, for some refreshments perhaps? I would be excited to hear about your journey as well, should you be inclined to talk about it!” Felicity was happy to agree, “We do have something we wish to inform you of, so I will gladly take you up on your offer, mayor!”

Lytton led the two of them inside. The manor was lavishly furnished, showing off the wealth that flowed through Baycall as it was the centre of trade for the Esaburg kingdom with Arcrary and Wrachurid. Velvet carpets were laid on the marble floors for additional comfort, and extended from the entrance hall all the way to the parlour on the far left, where they were being led towards by the attentive mayor. He gave short comments on each piece of art they passed, be it a painting or a porcelain vase. When they arrived at their destination, a strict-looking butler wearing a black swallowtail had already proffered three cups of fragrant tea as well as an assortment of snacks.

Felicity and Eulisses took a seat on a fluffy divan next to each other, while Lytton sat on the opposite side of the crystalline table holding the refreshments. The princess grabbed the porcelain cup in front of her and took a sip, savouring the taste before starting to talk. “Our journey from the capital to here was a solitary one, we had the roads to us alone, save for one exception. On the fourth day, our carriage was raided by a large group of bandits.”

Eulisses remained silent, as Felicity gave a short recount of the happenings. He noticed the mayor turning slightly pale in the beginning, with a single pearl of sweat running down his cheek, before he regained his composure. The wizard disregarded it as a momentary worry, as the princess was attacked on what probably already counted as land under his jurisdiction, but entered an alert state immediately after, when he felt a constant strain on his magical reserves ease and an ephemeral voice speaking to him.

“I fear I have to depart already, Eu, as both of our objectives have already been fulfilled. Be sure to give me a glowing recommendation to any prospective customers you meet!” Eulisses was startled by the voice of his summoned devil, and how quickly they allegedly took care of their business. Already? Well, must be, since devils cannot break a contract and return to their plane once one has been established. One less worry then, I won’t complain. The undead mage was about to inform his royal companion and their current host of this news, but paused when the devil had one last sentence for him to hear. “Oh, and this one’s on the house, for old time’s sake: In case you’ve already arrived at Baycall, beware its mayor. He is more than he pretends to be.” With this final goodbye, the devil Drernoth departed the realm for good, as indicated by Eulisses no longer needing to reserve any energy for the summoning spell.

I wonder what that’s all about? Is this relevant to the task they were assigned? The mayor, in cahoots with the bandits? Or is it completely unrelated, maybe not of relevance to us in the slightest? A little prank ‘for old time’s sake’?

Eulisses decided he would try to find out more about his acquaintance’s warning later, for now he opted to give those present the news. “... and my companion here,” the princess gestured at him with a small wave of her hand, “has seen to it, that even the rest of the criminals will be put to justice, although we haven’t heard of …” He interrupted her sentence, “The remaining bandits have been dealt with, I have only just received confirmation.”

Felicity gave him a quizzical look, while the mayor appeared to be relieved to hear it. “Is that so? I have to thank you then, though I’m afraid I still don’t know your name?” Understanding the implicit prompt, Eulisses introduced himself, “My name is Eulisses Malinor, a wizard by trade, and I am the princess’ …”

“Personal aide, in regards to the Convergence. I don’t want to speculate further, since the precise degree of his involvement will be one of the things discussed at the summit,” the princess cut him off. The mayor studied him with unconcealed interest. “Oh? A wizard of some ability, if you single handedly took care of the bandits that remained from the attack on you, and a confidant to her Highness? Such an illustrious figure, yet I haven’t heard of you. What a disgraceful display on my part, I apologize. How did you say this arrangement came about again?”

I didn’t, and it looks like Felicity doesn’t want me to either. Keeping this whole ‘Hero’ business under tight wraps to reveal it at the summit, when it would have the most impact, perhaps? Felicity confirmed his speculations, when she evasively responded, “A story for another time perhaps, it is getting quite late, and the journey has taken its toll on us.”

The mayor facepalmed theatrically. “Of course, I apologize! I have kept your company for too long already. Please follow Sebastian here,” he gestured towards the butler from earlier, who neither Felicity nor Eulisses noticed vanished or reappeared again, “he will show you to your rooms that have been prepared for you.”

Eulisses was reminded of his odd adventurer acquaintance again, who once told him about some universal law concerning the naming conventions of male housekeeping personnel, and followed Sebastian together with Felicity after bidding the mayor goodnight. In the entrance hall, they met with Trevis, who informed them that the Royal Guard escort would stay in the servant’s quarters, since their numbers were too high to be split over the number of available guestrooms. He had already discussed the details with Sebastian earlier, while they were having their conversation with the mayor.

After parting with the Second Lieutenant, the two of them ascended the staircase in the entrance hall and were shown to two adjacent rooms on the first floor. Giving them a perfect bow and telling them to ring the handbell present in each of the rooms in case they needed anything, Sebastian left them alone. Instead of entering his own room, Eulisses went straight to Felicity’s, softly brushing her shoulder with his hand as he passed her, followed by suggestively pointing with his head towards the open room, indicating he wanted to have a private talk with her.

She blankly stared at him with ever so slightly parted lips instead of moving, so after a short while he ceased to stand by the entrance like he thought etiquette demanded and unabashedly entered the lady’s room first.

The guestroom’s furnishing and decoration was in no way inferior to the rest of the manor’s. A massive four-poster bed took up the centre of the room, wide enough to provide enough space for two or three people to comfortably lie next to each other. Two wing chairs were put next to each other, with a small sofa table inbetween, in front of a large picture window that provided a breathtaking view of the city and the sea to whoever took a seat. Eulisses unhesitantly headed for the seating furniture and plopped down in one of the two, before looking behind him to see if Felicity would follow him.

The princess seemed to have awoken from her stupor, as she shook her head before finally entering her assigned room herself, closing and locking the door behind her. She took a seat next to him and stared out of the window, taking in the sight of a moonlit city and sparkling sea in the distance, reflecting the many stars in the sky. Only a couple of places in Baycall were still alight, giving them an almost unobscured view that calmed their hearts and minds.

After a short moment of blissful silence, Eulisses murmured a short incantation to shield them from unwanted eavesdroppers, and then began: “Drernoth has been dismissed, which means the contract is fulfilled.” He put a hand on his forehead “They weren't required to report back, an oversight on my part, in retrospect. We thus don’t know yet, if those bandits were part of some larger conspiracy, that inevitably won’t remain a secret to the public anymore, or whether they were just an uncharacteristically large group of bandits, and nothing more.” Eulisses paused for a moment, before concluding with “The speed with with Drernoth accomplished the task, leaves me to believe it’s the latter.”

“It was in the heat of the situation, and I was pushing for more as well, so don’t be hung up about it. What matters is, that the bandits are dealt with, and that the roads are being safe again,” Felicity tried to console him.

“There is another matter: Before leaving, Drernoth sent me a final message. ‘Beware the mayor, he is more than he pretends to be’, does this mean anything to you?” Felicity thought about it for a moment, before denying. “No, not as far as I am aware. I don’t know Orson Lytton personally, but I know of him. He allegedly is of cautious nature and has quite the mind for business, working hard so the city - and by extension the kingdom - can profit from the many trade ships anchoring here to load off their goods. He also ensures that much of the wealth flows into the city and not just into his own pockets, for which he is well liked by the populace.” A frown steals itself on her face, as she commented, “That is more than I can expect from most nobles leading their baronies and the like, so I thought reasonably well of him till now.”

“I don’t know if this is related to the bandit attack or not, but we should best remain cautious regardless.” A short silence followed, after which Eulisses proposed an idea. “I do not require to rest daily. With your permission, I shall remain seated here and awake, watching over you in case things go downhill.”

He didn’t look at Felicity, so he didn’t catch her expression at his proposal, before she reigned it in. “I … I know you probably mean well Eulisses, but … I wouldn’t feel comfortable, or be able to fall asleep, with you just … sitting there.”

Eulisses laughed in response, as he answered with “What’s the matter Felicity? Suddenly afraid of being in a room alone with me? What about our carriage ride, all the way from the capital?”

But he nevertheless stood up and made for the door. He pointed a finger at it and drew a symbol in the air, while speaking an incantation. “It’s a modified version of my alarm spell, if anyone other than me touches the door, I will be notified and check if everything is in order.” He opened the door and closed it behind him while saying “Goodnight, Felicity.”

She didn’t know why she suddenly felt ashamed.