>>5167554Poor Ashe doesn’t seem like he plans on bailing the two of you out of this, so you use whatever residual charisma you have left from your time as a leader of men to take control of the situation.
>“While I’m glad all of you were so…concerned, with what I was up to, I assure you that it’s none of your business. But if you must know, we were delayed due to the whims of a certain mad woman everyone here is familiar with. She left me a going away present.” You step into the light of the fire, close enough where everyone can see the blood on your clothes clearly, as well as the cut on your neck.Corrine is the first to break the silence that follows everyone’s collective gasping and ogling. “I don’t suppose that’s just the result of some roughho-“
>“If you insinuate what I think you’re about to, I’ll light you on fire.”“Fair enough.”
“Blair! What happened?” Xavier inquires as he gets closer to you, whisps of healing magic circling around him.
You fill the group in on your conversation with Alena. You spare no details, other than what she mentioned about the war. Alena was undoubtedly talking about the same war the Count was, and you figure it best to stand by your promise.
“Agartha-what’s it now?” Dorothea asks, brow furrowed in confusion. “First I’ve ever heard of it. How about you Caspar? Your father is the head of the Empire’s military after all. Wouldn’t he know about some strange ore being used to make weapons?”
Caspar looks embarrassed. “Uhh, well we’re not exactly on very familiar terms. But no, can’t say it rings a bell.”
“It stands to reason that if it’s that rare, the Empire would want to keep it secret.” Kate says, poking a stick into the fire.
>“Well, you all know about as much as I do.” You rub your throat where the cut had been. Thanks to Xavier’s magic, the wound seems to have all but vanished. “The good thing is, we stopped her before she could do any further harm. I’ll write a letter to the Count when we return.”“Sorry we uhh, got a bit of ahead of ourselves back there. Especially in light of recent news.” Dorothea says, putting an arm around your shoulder.
“Same here. The thought of my little Blair’s innocence being stolen by that vile boy-!”
“H-hey!” Ashe interrupts, protesting Corrine before she could finish.
“I still don’t get what that was all about.” Martha says. To her side, Caspar is also still looking confused.
“Uhh, Lady Dorothea! We should be returning to the monastery just in time for the White Heron Cup! Are you looking forward to competing?” Xavier asks, clearly wishing to change the subject.
