258: Farrow
Sitting at the table, my focus was on the door. I had set up a confrontation with a lord I knew nothing about and really didn't have much to say to him besides, stop cutting the forest or else.
How do I even say that? Do I just be blunt?
Internally, I was in a full panic, but I did my best to seem calm and prepared for this decision. I noticed Liane made sure to sit closer to me, while Lily was now sitting next to me, with Crisplet behind me expressing power, confidence, and what I was pretty sure was a willingness to punch them if they said no. However, that feeling was very complex, and I may be misunderstanding.
One positive thing that happened, however, was that Gilain had successfully gotten everyone in the room on our side, if the cheers and rowdiness were anything to go by.
Twice the door to the inn opened, causing the whole room to immediately go silent before they realised it was not the lord entering, before there was an audible groan as everyone went back to their drinks, confusing the entering group before they were caught up to speed.
Finally, though, the door opened, and the steward entered first, now looking incredibly nervous; gone was his confidence and bluster of earlier.
He was followed by an older man, his hair greying, very portly and shorter than the steward, with an incredible scowl on his face, looking around in almost disgust.
The room itself went quiet, but no one moved. I noticed as well that only one spot was left at the table for someone to sit across from me; I had to assume it was intentional.
His eyes locked with mine. I would have stood out at this point since I had removed my travel cloak and made sure my armour and scarf were on full display, with my white jacket partially opened.
From across the room, he said, "Surely you'd prefer to come to my residence. I could make you the finest meal, and we won't need to be in this establishment."
He was laying on the pleasantries so thick that it hurt, and it really helped to give me the resolve to see this through, here and now.
"No, here will do. Your steward lost your chance to do this in private, I'm afraid," I said as calmly as I could, gesturing to the seat in front of me.
The man just glared at the steward, who appeared to shrink back, almost looking as if he feared he was going to be struck, but the lord moved forward, where I stood up to greet him.
When he reached the table, I reached out my hand to shake his. "Proper introductions are in order, but first, Milo, would you mind giving us a small bit of privacy?"
Milo immediately clicked to what I was asking, and the air mana rushed past us, encompassing the table and the fireplace where I noticed Luis was now leaning against the wall, hood up, in his cloak.
I also pushed across to Crisplet the feeling of ash. I knew the inn wouldn't like not seeing this, but I needed to keep this conversation private to avoid a panic, truthfully.
Crisplet also quickly surrounded us all with a haze of ash, I noticed, excluding the steward and only allowing one guard and the lord to be inside it. Just before it closed in, however, I couldn't help but notice a familiar face sitting at a booth on the far side of the inn that I hadn't noticed before. Altin?
I quickly shook it from my mind, reminding myself to speak with the others when this was over. As Lord Farrow looked around, he seemed to relax before taking my hand.
"Yes, indeed, I have heard much about you, and I see it's not all rumours," he said, looking at Lily.
I smiled. "Regrettably, I know little of these towns, and I had hoped to have a private conversation with you tomorrow; unfortunately, my hand was forced. My name is Trevor Ashmoon, and as I told your steward, I am the lord of the house in charge of the dark forest and all bordering towns and villages."
Lord Farrow nodded. "Yes, I am Lord Frederick Farrow. I appreciate the privacy, but may I ask why I was demanded to come here? If it were just my staff, I can assure you that I will make sure he is appropriately punished."
I shook my head. "No, it's not just him; he only expedited this. Please sit."
Looking around the table, I noticed everyone was eagerly listening, with the only people who seemed to find this all enjoyable being Gilain and Liane.
Frederick sat down as instructed and looked around the table, clearly confused at the group, his eyes lingering on Lily sitting at my side, and Gilain.
"I'll not waste your time and get right to the point. From this week, all logging and destruction of the dark forest must cease, and laws need to be put in place punishing anyone who does it anyway," I said simply.
Frederick seemed to register what I said, and instantly his demeanour went from timid to outraged.
"Impossible! The town needs that income to survive, not to mention safety!" he said, earning a growl from Lily at my side.
I reached down, giving her a scratch, as I continued, "This isn't optional, and I'll be completely honest with you right now: if it does not stop, the dragon Sylverith, who resides in there, will burn the town and all its residents to the ground. This town looks beautiful; I wouldn't want that. Would you?"
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Internally, I was barely holding my composure. This was the first time I think I had really used my authority like this, and it felt wrong, but I just reminded myself that negotiations with me would be far easier than dealing with Sylverith.
"Surely there is something that can be done? Adventurers remove the dragon or something? This doesn't even address the concerns about safety; if we don't remove the forest, we'll lose our buffer and have to deal with attacks," Frederick countered.
Before I could even respond, Gilain burst into laughter, earning a glare.
And before I spoke, he joined in, "Stop being foolish. I'm over level four hundred, and that cat sitting next to him is stronger than I am, easily. The dragon in there is likely considerably stronger again; the kingdom will not sacrifice hundreds of its strongest warriors to defend any town," Gilain said, still laughing.
I sighed as Frederick turned his attention back to Lily, wide-eyed.
"He is right, and Sylverith has already had discussions with the king; this has been decided; it's not up for debate. To put it bluntly, Lord Farrow, if you're unable to do it, I will need to find someone who can. In terms of the safety of the city, that's likely to be an ongoing problem regardless, with the increased activity and monster attacks," I said, looking to Milo and Hari for ideas.
Hari joined in at that invitation, "I would advise that funds be allocated to have a more permanent guild presence in the town with a standing order to hunt along the borders; Lily can confirm, but the destruction of the forest is for its plants and trees, not for an aggressive monster."
"I will not take financial advice from a random adventurer," Frederick said, surprising me that he was still so combative.
"Well, in this case, you're taking it from the son of Lord Lingberg," I said bluntly, drawing his attention back to me.
"The hostility here won't help anyone, so I think you need to reassess that. This is a decision from the king himself; it's not optional, and disobeying it will get you replaced at best, or everyone in this town along with the town itself killed and destroyed. Is your pride worth so much? Should we drop this barrier and let your townsfolk hear you'd rather see them dead than listen to reason?" I said with the most confidence I could muster.
I had played all my moves at this point, so if he still wouldn't go for it, I didn't know how to escalate further, other than having Sylverith visit.
Frederick, however, let out a resigned sigh. "Fine, let's say I end the logging. Where do we make up the income?"
I sighed; it was always about money. "When you end the logging, and you will, you can increase your efforts in the two other forests, as they seem to be growing faster than normal anyway. Or you can do it through foraging and rare ingredients. You have an abundance of them on your doorstep, though. After seeing the town, Lord Farrow, are you really short on funds? I can't imagine the weavers were cheap."
"That's all been paid for legitimately," he immediately said, getting defensive.
"I didn't say it wasn't. I'm not here to conduct checks on finances," I said with a chuckle.
Though I suspected that Luis, standing behind, might make a note to have it done after seeing that reaction.
Frederick scowled, "And you, as the Lord here, what are you doing to help us protect our town?"
I couldn't help but laugh. "I already don't take taxes from you outside of the minimum you owe the kingdom, and you want more? Frederick, what I have done for you is open up diplomacy with the dragon and work out a deal that lets you still live here."
Lily let out a growl; this time I felt it rumble through the floor, causing his guard to jump, clutching his spear tightly, and Frederick himself grew pale.
"Right you are," he said simply.
Putting on my best smile, I moved on in topic. "Right, let's discuss your steward then."
Frederick cut straight in, "I will see to his punishment, sir; you don't need to worry."
"I'm more concerned with why it happened at all. Do you and your staff make it a habit of finding people and kicking them out of town?" I asked innocently.
Frederick shook his head. "No, it was a misunderstanding. We got word that a dangerous fire elemental was in the town."
"I see, and a fire elemental who had done nothing besides travel with its party is dangerous?" I asked.
I knew I was leading him down a path here, and really, I didn't need to, but if I were not a lord, this would just be a repeat of my town visits before I reached the capital, where I had to get protection from the guild and hide away to be left alone. I wouldn't do that anymore.
Frederick looked conflicted at my comment, and I decided to save him from answering incorrectly.
"The answer you're looking for is no, I don't mind you looking out for the health and safety of your town and dealing with troublemakers, but Frederick, kicking out and insulting travellers who've done nothing wrong is unacceptable, especially when you and your staff, in this case, have not even done the bare minimum to work out who they are," I said, looking at him very seriously.
I couldn't help but notice a giant grin on Liane's face through all this, which reminded me of the last thing I needed to discuss.
"I'll let you deal with your steward and expect no more trouble. We'll be gone in a few days, and Crisplet has full control of his fire. I have one last topic to discuss with you."
Frederick was nodding. "I understand, sir, and I will address it with my staff and the guards."
"You have an orphanage in this town, correct?" I asked.
Frederick looked confused. "Yes? We've not fallen short of our quota, sir."
I waved that off; that would be another thing I'd need to look into, but not now. "I will visit it tomorrow and may implement some changes. I expect you'll support my decisions there."
I wasn't planning on this at all, really, in this conversation, but if I'm in the town and I have the power to make changes, I will make changes.
"Yes? Though we are following the guidelines and producing the required soldiers," Frederick sounded confused.
"Excellent, I'll be there tomorrow. That is all, Frederick. Thank you for coming," I said.
It was meant as a dismissal, and he took it as such, rising to his feet and bowing, "It's been a pleasure to meet you."
The air bubble around us popped as the ash flowed back into the fireplace, as all eyes were still on us.
"I trust you'll implement the changes that have been requested by the king, and you'll deal with him appropriately," I said, looking at the steward, who gulped and looked terrified.
"Yes, sir, I'll see it done and report if I have any issues."
As he left, I looked to where I saw Altin and noticed the table was now empty. Behind me, Luis had also vanished back into the crowd.
I saw Hari leaning over to Liane, whispering something, before she also got up from her chair and disappeared a moment later. I felt a squeeze on my shoulder, which I assumed must have been her, as she moved past me.
"That went well, I think?" I said with a nervous laugh.