Chapter 304: Unsaid Words
As the journey back to Norneau began, Kir stood on the deck of the Riverleaf, safe in his restored disguise as Professor Kiryu Nasumi.
After the battle it had taken hours of tugging on his bond with Stella to summon her to the small island on which he made his landing. She’d arrived with a retinue that included a Chancellor Lumin so furious the old hag had come out the other side to a sort of zen-like patience. One thing Lumin made clear was that their deal still stood, even when he threw down the suitcase at her feet and declared that he was going to break Norneau away from the idea that gold was money.
When she asked "What the Hell does that mean?" the only thing he said was "Watch." Her silence was all the answer Kir wanted, and she gave it. That, or as Kiryu put it, "Why piss off the living nuclear bomb she just hitched her fortunes to?"
Kir was angry at at how things turned out, and thinking through the contradictions it might introduce to his Ghostheart persona had been unpleasant. But regardless of what he wanted, the reality was that he would need to stop being Ghostheart for the near future if he wanted those he was leaving behind in Amrita to be safe.
Kir found himself sharing Kiryu’s cynicism when it came to the people he was now involved with. He didn’t have a good impression of Quilliam, and Imogen seemed sincere but comfortable where she was.
From Imogen, he learned the druid controlling the tree was likely Princess Tulia Anmes, who was bonded to the great spirit of the world tree.
Kordia had much to say about feeling the mana shifting through the world tree, and she showed great concern for Kir, especially after learning about his encounter with Rainier’s brother.
Despite the Prince’s threats, Kir was able to work his way back into the city, once Quilliam came through with a new ring. Until then, he lay low by camping out in the woods further north.
The sudden disappearance of the richest vault in the city was covered up, with the King claiming that after a fire the gold was safely relocated to the palace and that the Kingdom would handle and protect banking directly until the Heavenswar passed.
Wanted posters for Ghostheart went up all over the city, with a truly staggering hundred and fifteen orichalc offered for him, dead. Seeing this, the already few demonkin in Amrita started withdraw from public life as the lives of their menfolk came under threat, with the wealthier ones leaving the city entirely.
These were all effects that Kir saw as he lay low and conducted his field trip properly with Lumin’s supervision. Imogen took the lead on behalf of his abolition goals, pumping anti-slavery brochures and Ghostheart comics into the academic and public spheres through anonymous backchannels.