I awoke in bed in a dark room. The first thing I noticed was my notification flag flashing. I took a quick look at the list of notifications. The first one I opened was a warning that my mana was low and that further casting would use lifeforce if my mana ran out. That would have been good to know earlier, I thought to myself. Luckily, I had regeneration, so I was already healed up. I checked and both mana and Heaven’s Health were back to 100%. The next notifications were the Cure All and Heaven’s Heal spells upgrading and leveling. Funnily enough, Cure All leveled more than Heaven’s Heal. The next notification let me know I got a new spell called Diagnose. The other notifications were about my Cure All removing Malodorous Corruption from the Earl.
As I moved to get out of the bed, I realized that I had no clothes. I was naked. I looked around the room, but had trouble making out details in the dark. I could see the outline of the windows, so I made my way over. I threw the curtains aside, and looked out. I could see a large courtyard. It was the interior of the Earl’s manor. The manor was built as four interconnected building, much like roman villas. However, the architecture was of an unknown style. At least unknown to me. There was an archway in the back with a gate and a road leading out. I was beginning to plan my escape, if needed, when the door to my room opened, letting in light, quickly followed by two people.
One of the men moved to a fixture on the wall by the door and turned a knob. Light blossomed from the ceiling, lighting up the entire room. As you can imagine, this caused me some discomfort not only from my eyes adjusting to the brightness, but the fact that I was standing there absolutely naked for the world to see. The second man, who I identified as No name, the official that met me at the manor’s entrance, chuckled and pointed to a chair next to the bed. “There are your clothes. Please avail yourself of them.” And politely looked away. I rushed over to the chair and started to donned my clothes. Not really a fan of letting my modesty hangout for everyone to see. Putting on my armor coat made feel more at ease, knowing I had at least some protection.
“My name is Ruberm of House Donnert. I am the Earl Donnert’s household chief of staff. I want to thank you for saving the Earl. He is recovered and anxious to meet you. We were coming to check up on you to see if you had recovered also. Thankfully you have. If it pleases you, we would like to bring you to the Earl now.” Ruberm spoke with an easy tone of voice, that still conveyed this was not negotiable. Ruberm was dressed in a casual looking green and blue robe, with pant and a shirt underneath. He was on the shorter side, about 5’ 6” tall. He did not appear overweight, but it was hard to tell with the robes covering him. His sandy blonde hair was cut short and he sported a full beard about an inch long. All in all, he looked quite dapper.
“It would be my pleasure, but before I go. Can you tell me where my sword is? It is a family heirloom and I need to have it in my possession at all times.” I said as I looked at Ruberm. It was not beyond me to think that someone might have wanted to keep my “magic” sword for themselves.
At the mention of Family Heirloom, Ruberm starting nodding his head in understanding. “It’s in the closet.” And pointed to a wardrobe at the far end of the room. Oh, that makes sense, I thought to myself, slightly embarrassed. I walked over to the wardrobe, opened it, and there stored neatly inside was all my equipment. I reached out took my sword and buckled it on. I added my dagger to my belt, and was ready to go. My spear was already in my ring, as were most of my other belongings.
“Is it okay if I leave my pack here until after I meet with the Earl? Oh, and how should I address him?”, I asked.
“Of course, now if you are ready. You may call him My Lord, Lord Earl, or Earl Donnert, unless he asks you to address him differently.” Ruberm waved his arm toward the door. I moved outside the room and followed Ruberm, with the two guards following both of us. A few short minutes later, we enter a huge room, that looked like a cross between a living room and an office. The furniture was exquisite. I could tell the detailed craftmanship from across the room. The colors almost always included vivid greens and blues. Later I found out that these were the Earl’s colors.
The Earl was sitting behind his desk, and rose after we came into the room. He was a tall good-looking man, about 6 feet tall, with long dark brown hair, vivid green eyes and clean shaven. He wore a light green, loose-fitting, long-sleeved, button-down shirt and thin dark blue trousers. Not the colors I would choose, but to each their own. He was the very picture of a nobleman. He started walking around the desk toward us saying “So, this is the man who saved my life. I am truly grateful. My advisor say that I was almost gone but your quick actions were lifesaving, literally.”
A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.
“Thank you for your praise, Earl Donnert, but praise should be for those who treated you before I got there. If they hadn’t done everything possible, I would have been too late. They are the ones that truly deserve your gratitude.” The Earl looked at me stunned. It seemed he thought I would take all the credit. “It was by chance that I arrived in Forest Glen. When I arrived, your guard Avery asked if I had healing abilities because of his concern for you. He then escorted me directly to your manor and explained to the Ruberm that I could heal. Ruberm brought me to your physician, who in turn explained what had been done and what they were encountering. Your priest and healers had used all their mana keeping you alive. Without that effort, I would not have been able to do anything.”
“It speaks well of you to give credit to those who deserve it, but you also deserve credit for your actions and your willingness to help. Using all your mana put you in danger, and I will not forget it. I am glad that we have both come through intact. Let us sit and discuss what I can do for you while you are in Forest Glen.” The count led me over to a sitting area and the three of us sat down. He called out to one of the serving ladies asking for food and drink. When the server returned, he thanked her and took a glass of wine. Ruberm and I did the same. She left a tray of what looked like baked goods on the table within easy reach. After the Earl took one of baked goods, I did the same. However, our reactions to tasting them was completely different. When I bit down on the cake, my mouth was filled with the most delicious thing I have ever eaten. I almost cried. It wasn’t hunger that made this taste so great, but eating the same gruel for the last two months. This heavenly taste was overwhelming and I just sat there reveling in it. The Earl and Ruberm noticed my reaction and waited until I recovered my composure.
“My apologies but it has been some time since I have tasted something as heavenly as this. My travels were long and lonely. My menu was … lacking to say the least.” I smiled to show that I was not complaining just explaining.
“You seem to be quite intriguing. From where do you hail and what brings you to Forest Glen?”
“Where I hail from, I would rather not say at this time. To reassure you, I will swear that I am no outlaw, no ruffian or evildoer. I am not running from anything or anyone. The truth is my soul was damage in a fight against a true demon and I am looking for a place to rest and recover. I was told it will take years to recover, but the cost of not recovering is untenable for me. Now, what brings me to Forest Glen is simple. I am looking for a place to call home. A place to live, work and rest, where it is quiet and peaceful. Or at least peaceful as it can be. My customs are different than yours and I hope I have not offended you, Earl Donnert. If you feel my presence in Forest Glen is problematic, then I will leave at first light.” I bowed my head as I finished.
A silence descended on the room as I finished speaking. After a few seconds, I was convinced that Earl Donnert would be sending me on my way. Why I told him about my soul damage, I have no idea. It was liked I was compelled to speak the truth. I just needed them to know that I was a good person looking for a home.
“First, you can call me Mikael when we are meeting informally. I do get tire of ‘my Lord this, my Lord that’. It would be nice to be able to just talk with someone sometime. Second, I thank you for your honesty. Soul damage is no easy thing to recover, and surviving a fight with a true demon is an amazing feat. I would like to hear about it sometime. Third, you may reside in Forest Glen. Of course, living in Forest Glen requires that you provide some service to the community. I might suggest setting up a shop to use Cure All and your healing spells, if it can cure diseases and such. There is no other magical healer, so you won’t have to worry about competition. Fourth, when the monster surge happens, you will need to man the walls, or fight outside of them. Again, your Heaven’s Heal and Cure All spells will be extremely helpful at that time. Finally, I will have Ruberm find you a modest house inside the city as your residence as a thank you for saving me. Ruberm, anything else to add?”
Ruberm said “I believe the Covern House is available and would be an excellent location for Young Master Trevor.” This was the first time anyone had ever referred to me as Young Master. I would find out later that it was an honorific only for those who are exceptional in their craft. “It is near the market area, and there is a separate area downstairs that can be used to set up a store. The healers in Forest Glen don’t have any ability to cure diseases, so that shouldn’t be a problem. The Priests can cure some disease, but not too many and since they don’t charge for it. It shouldn’t be a problem either. However, you will have to negotiate with the Healers Guild if you want to use Heaven’s Heal for healing. The Healers have a guild and you don’t want to run afoul of them. They can be quite temperamental. While their healing is limited to potions, bleeding, and bandaging, they will still want to provide approval. I will arrange a meeting with the Guild for this week to discuss your options.”
Earl Donnert interjected “Excellent. That should set you up nicely for your stay here. I will let you get settled and have Ruberm set up a dinner for next week to give you time to settle. If you need anything, please talk to Ruberm. He is the most knowledgeable person about what is going on in Forest Glen.”
The Earl stood up, as did Ruberm and myself. With a handshake, he bade me a good day, and Ruberm led me out of the room. Ruberm and I went back to the room where I slept and I gathered my equipment, then we set out for Covern House.
