Chương 135: Book 3 Chapter 13 - The Duke And Duchess

Sea monsters? Kiara had heard stories, but didn't know enough to discern truth from fiction in this area.

"How dangerous are they?" she asked, a bit nervous now. Esmerelda let out a snort, giving her a look.

"Scared of the water, are we?" Kiara turned away, her cheeks going red. She was scared of the water, seeing s didn't know how to swim, but she didn't want to admit that in front of a group of people who had grown up on an island.

"My apologies," Esmerelda said quickly, seeing Kiara blush.

"I spoke out of turn, attempting to jest. It was not my place."

"It's okay," Kiara mumbled. Esmerelda turned to face the open water again.

"We shouldn't need to worry. Sentry towers are posted every hundred miles or so leading up the coast, and most monsters are turned back before they get this far inland. Any that do make it this far are quickly persuaded to avoid the ferries and boats."

"Persuaded how?" Zoey asked from the side. Esmerelda smiled at her then nodded to Captain Rovinald.

"Ole' Rovinald there gives them a reason to vacate the area. He patrols the passage, flying between the ferries to make sure everyone is safe. If anything happens while he's checking on another ferry, the ship's crew will use the ship's cannons to ward off the monsters."

"Cannons?" Ava asked, a spark of excitement in her voice. Esmeralda nodded.

"Enchanted artifacts that launch any number of powerful spells wherever they're pointed. Very expensive to use though, which is why Rovinald tries to handle the situation personally when he can."

"Oh, I hope we get to see some monsters!" Ava squealed with delight. Quite a few of the guards laughed at her enthusiasm, but then hastily made symbolic warding symbols with their hands as they looked to the sky. Kiara sided with the guards, she hoped no sea monsters made an appearance. She was already nervous enough as it was. Once the last cart was loaded up, the drawbridge plank was raised, sealing everyone inside, and large sails unfurled on the masts.

The ship's crew all took up places around the captain's deck, funneling magic into some enchantment, and the ship lurched into motion. The sails also billowed out, helping pull them out to sea. The three large continents all lay fairly close to each other relative to their size, but up close the distance was still notable. The journey by ferry to the central island was about seventy miles, and would take them the better part of four days.

The boat was large enough that the ocean swells didn't rock it too much, but Kiara still got seasick that first day. She spent a few hours on the floor groaning while Zoey gently rubbed her back sympathetically. By the second day she was feeling much better, and was able to eat with the others. Once they were out far enough, the land faded behind them, and all Kiara could see in any direction was the deep, blue expanse of water surrounding them. It was both eerie and beautiful in a way.

Rovinald had flown off the ship about an hour after they launched, making the rounds to the other ships. Kiara did the math, and realized that he must have over a dozen ferries that he kept an eye on. She wondered when he slept, or if he even did. Maybe someone else rotated in for a shift sometimes? Or maybe at his level a quick power nap every now and then was all he needed. The time passed slowly at first, but everyone quickly fell into a rhythm.

It was nice having time to sit and visit with everyone without being jostled around like a carriage ride would do. Once Kiara acclimated to the gentle motion of the ship, it was actually quite pleasant. Every few hours a ferry would pass them headed the other direction, and Kiara was impressed by how exact the distance always was between the passing ships. They must have some kind of lane they stayed in for travel in either direction, and she wondered how they coordinated that and knew where to go.

Nothing of note happened, and to Ava's dismay, no sea monsters appeared. They landed late at night three and a half days after they'd left. The large drawbridge plank was lowered, and the carts and wagons disembarked first. That took the better part of an hour, after which the passengers were allowed to leave the boat. Kiara's first few steps onto dry land felt awkward, as if the ground was swaying beneath her feet. She stumbled slightly, earning a chuckle from some of the guards in Esmerelda's unit.

They had grown close enough over the course of the trip, talking around the campfires and such, that they all mostly called her Shian now, other than Captain Esmerleda herself, and she didn't mind their snickers. She considered most of them to be friends at this point. They found rooms at nearby inns to sleep for the night, and the next morning they set off again for Lakeshire. The trip from the port to Lakeshire would take another three days, and they once again travelled by carriage.

If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it's taken without the author's consent. Report it. By the time they reached Lakeshire, Kiara noticed that Ava had grown quite close to the entire group, but most especially to herself, Dustin, and Zoey. She treated all three of them like she would her older siblings, and they responded in kind. It was the first time Kiara had that kind of relationship with her since her reincarnation, and it made her heart happy.

Lakeshire was massive, dwarfing both Portish and the port cities by a long shot. There were no city walls, which Kiara found strange, since even Portish had one. It made sense in a way though, as a wall would just get in the way here. The entire area was a sprawling metropolis, miles wide in each direction. As they made their way toward the heart of the city, the streets got wider, the buildings got taller, and the crowds got thicker.

The duke's caravan was shown deference on the outskirts of the city, but not once they reached the middle. The crowds and carriages jostled for position, and everyone seemed in too much of a hurry to waste time with politeness and etiquette. The noise grew to an outrageous level as well, as people shouted over each other to be heard.

The sound of vendors hawking their wares dwindled as they reached the city center proper, where everyone moved as if they had somewhere important to be, and they were eager to get there as soon as possible. Esmerelda led them into one of the city office buildings, where the noise blessedly died down once they were inside. She spoke to Kiara, "Since it's the middle of the day, the duke and duchess are here, instead of at their estate. I will show you to their office."

Kiara nodded, and they followed her up three flights of stairs to the fourth level of the building. The walls and floor were all a pristine white, and large extravagant chandeliers hung from the ceiling every twenty feet or so in the corridors. They made a few turns deeper into the heart of the building, until Esmerelda finally opened a door and led them inside.

They stepped into a large waiting room, where chairs and couches lined the walls and were interspersed throughout the room in comfortable seating arrangements. In the center of the room, a secretary sat behind a desk, his spectacles hanging halfway down his nose. He looked up as they entered, and stood to bow to Esmerelda as she approached.

"Lady Esmerelda, welcome back. I trust your journey went well?"

"It did, thank you, Byron," Esmerelda said, dipping her head in appreciation.

"Is the duke in?" Byron nodded, glancing over the duke's schedule on his desk.

"He is, but he's in a meeting for another fifteen minutes. Once he's finished, I'll let him know that your group has arrived. You can all take a seat anywhere you'd like." He motioned around the room at all of the empty seating. Esmerelda nodded and bowed slightly, then motioned to Kiara and her group to choose a seat. The main body of guards had all stayed outside the city office with Bruce and Bronson, and only Esmerelda had accompanied the group inside.

They sat in a corner while they waited for the duke to be ready for them. Dustin pulled a pack of cards from his storage ring and began showing Ava some magic tricks. She giggled in delight at each one, asking how it was done. Kiara smiled, noting that between the two of them, Ava was the only one with real magic. Eventually, the clerk came over to their group and asked them to follow him into the duke's office.

The large, double doors into the office were made of solid wood, and Kiara noticed runes inscribed on not only the doors, but also the doorframe itself. The clerk pulled one door open without knocking – he'd clearly already cleared their arrival with the duke – then beckoned them to step inside. Esmerelda led the way. The office inside was larger than Kiara expected, probably thirty feet wall to wall in either direction.

A large, ornate desk sat centered near the back wall, and behind it sat the noblest, most regal looking man Kiara had ever laid eyes on. His black hair had streaks of gray, as did his neatly trimmed beard. His posture spoke of assumed authority and expected compliance, and his eyes sparkled with intelligence and barely masked delight. This was a man in his element.

"Welcome!" he boomed in a deep, pleasant voice as they entered. He gestured to four chairs in front of the desk, the perfect number for their party. Kiara could spot divots in the carpet where other chair legs had recently made an impression, but the extra chairs had been removed before their party entered. The attention to detail was impressive. Esmerelda made her way behind the desk, handing the duke a written report, which he accepted with a nod of thanks.

"Wonderful work, as always, Esmerelda," he complimented her.

"Have your team take the rest of the week off after such a long trip." Esmerelda smiled in appreciation and bowed respectfully.

"As you wish, my lord. Do you require anything else for now?" He smiled in response and shook his head.

"That'll be all, thank you." Esmerelda turned and nodded at Kiara and each member of her group, then left the room, closing the large door behind her. As it clicked shut, some enchantments around the doorframe flared to life and an almost invisible haze settled over the doors and all of the walls. It wasn't until that moment that Kiara noticed the woman sitting behind and to the side of the duke. How had she missed her before? She was tall and beautiful, appearing young-middle-aged, like the duke.

Her long, flowing hair fell around her shoulders and down her sides, bouncing slightly as she moved. Kiara tentatively reached out with [Magical Sense 4], curious about who they were in the room with. The duke registered as a tier 5, and extraordinarily powerful. The danger sense she got from the man was similar to the feeling she got from Victor before his breakthrough to tier 6. The woman, on the other hand, registered as a tier 6, and Kiara's danger sense went wild.

She had never felt anything like this before, even from Victor after his breakthrough. She supposed it made sense though, since Victor had only just advanced to tier 6 recently. She knew instinctively that either one of these people could kill her and her entire group with a flick of their wrist, and there wasn't anything she could do to stop them. The disparity between Rekton's power level and even just the duke was astonishing, but the woman to the duke's side was on another level entirely.

The duke caught Kiara's gaze, and smiled at the woman to his side.

"I am Charles Esborne, and this is my wife, Victoria Esborne." He reached out, and they clasped each others' hands lovingly for a brief moment. He returned his gaze to Kiara.

"You are Shian Yountal, I presume?"