Sworded Affair

Chapter 64 : Takeshi's Castle

"You're awfully cavalier, having just witnessed the death of myriad souls," Emma raised an eyebrow. "Hardly fits my brief of an idealistic young girl, one who fled into the arms of a childhood friend after committing a crime of passion."

"You, meanwhile, are wearing an awful lot of armour for an armchair general who never led a march once in her life," Princess Astaroth shot back with a smug grin. "Not to mention the magic, far above what would be expected from a supposed college dropout."

"Both of our briefs were filled with lies," Emma summarised, considering her turn of phrase carefully. "Although I expected as much when I took this post. Perhaps we should retire somewhere more private to discuss further? I prefer a more structured and systematic approach to diplomacy, all things considered."

That should be enough of a hint, Emma judged, watching her potential opponent jolt slightly at her barely hidden intentions.

"You did us a favor, removing the vermin from our doorstop," Princess Astaroth nodded in acknowledgement after another minute of silent staring. "Very well, you may enter."

The wards blanketing the castle flickered and faded, obeying the will of their mistress. Nudging Sir Bearington onward, Emma made it as far as the drawbridge before her mount combusted.

"He was a summoned being?" The Princess asked rhetorically, as Emma hastily recalled him to continue on foot. "There are secondary wards to defend against such workings, you should be good to continue alone however."

The main gate swung open, Emma half-expecting to be teleported to the Princess the moment she crossed the threshold. Defying her expectations however, a pair of guards were waiting inside, stepping into place on either side of Emma to escort her, politely yet firmly, to her destination. They were dressed in black leather from head to toe; gloves and stylised masks covering every inch of skin.

"Pretty empty for a castle recently under siege," Emma observed, receiving no response to her probe for information. "Are you both alright? I know it was a shock, what i did earlier, but I probably won't need to do that again."

Emma's guides ignored her stilted attempts at conversation entirely, leading her up three flights of stairs, the bare stone slick with damp, making her fearful for her footing. There were no other souls to be seen, a trend maintained until one guard rapped his knuckles upon a nondescript wooden door. The click of a sliding bolt pulling back preceded the door's opening, whereupon Emma was ushered inside with haste, the door slamming shut immediately after her entry, locked once more. The room was much like the rest of the castle; bare stone along every surface, dark wood furniture devoid of decorations and a single oil lamp to provide illumination in the absence of any windows. Princess Astaroth herself looked very out of place in the drab environment; wearing as she was a red sequin dress festooned with diamonds, paired with matching high heels and a golden tiara. Strangely, Emma wasn't able to make out any of her physical characteristics, only what she wore.

"Sorry for the surroundings, " The Princess shrugged sounding vaguely apologetic. "No food or drink either I'm afraid, too many attempts at poisoning our stores and wells recently."

"A shame," Emma deadpanned. "Are we free to speak plainly here?"

The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

"We are now," Princess Astaroth snapped her fingers, plunging the room into total silence; the dripping water, howling wind and chattering of household pests all fading to nothing.

"You're a System user as well," Emma began without preamble. "Another branch of the family, perhaps? I'd like to think I'd remember meeting a Princess, but it's hard to be sure these days. Some people are able to block memories, you know?"

"I know," The Princess winced. "Not really relevant here though; I grew up in Sweden and spent most of my life there, so we never had a chance to meet. Coming to Scholomance for my trial was my first time visiting Great Britain, for that matter. Before you ask, I'm not a Princess of a human kingdom either, for what it's worth. Warlocks earn their titles based on the relationship between them and their patron, Princess is ultimately just one potential title among many."

"Something to do with your glamour, maybe?" Emma squinted, still unable to see her true form past a tessellated mass of nothingness. "Never mind that; more importantly, why are you here? Are you the examiner for this floor?"

"I was the last person to complete this floor before you," The Princess clarified. "By tradition, I've been called here to play a role in the trial of my successor, just as you will be, the next time someone gets this far. It took five months before I was called, but I doubt you'll have that long; the Terminus will raise up a whole new generation of practitioners, for better or worse. I have no real goals related to the trial itself, since I've already been here before; whether you pass or fail does not affect me in the eyes of Scholomance. Of course, since we're both real people, relationships built in this tower will carry forward, assuming you survive. Nobody gets this far without some talent, so the wise try not to burn bridges here. My predecessor was very helpful to me, I intend to pay that forward."

"Figures," Emma huffed. "This entire trial stinks of politics. I've never been very good at that sort of thing, you know. If I was, I might have tried running the siege instead of blowing it all up. That said, since you're eager to help; what's the pass condition for this trial?"

"There isn't one," The Princess grinned immediately. "Except surviving, obviously. Don't be like the guy who got his throat slit by an NPC on Day 1; that was a century ago, and his name still appears as a cautionary tale in all the college textbooks. As long as you're alive on Day 30, the trial will end and you'll pass. Getting there isn't always the easiest though; you mentioned something about a siege?"

"Yeah, take a look for yourself," Emma offered, bringing up the related quest for her.

[Align in the Sand

Objective: Complete the Trial of Crowns.

(Bonus) Objective: Complete the Trial with the Princess alive.

(Bonus) Objective: Complete the Trial without changing Alignment.

(Bonus) Objective: Complete the Trial as the presumptive heir to the throne.

Rewards: 500 EXP, Archetype

Bonus Rewards: Companion - Princess Principal, Trait - Humanitarian Principle, Trait - Conqueror's Will]

"Huh," The Princess blinked. "A lot of conditions for you, all I had to do was survive and sacrifice a hundred people to the water. Good rewards though, if those are what I think them to be."

"The first condition should be simple enough, now that we're on speaking terms. The second shouldn't be bad either; I've not experienced an alignment change since I received one, so I guess that just means I should behave like myself. The third condition has me stumped though; my role is that of an unaffiliated general, not even a contender for the throne. How am I meant to change that while stuck on this map?"

"No trial is ever made to be intentionally impossible. If you'd played your role straight, my guess is that the other contenders would've shown up during the siege, trying to buy your loyalty and otherwise meddle with the siege. You'd have had to find a way to bump them all off, without offending the rest of the army and losing the siege. Since you're with me now, the genre changes to castle defence; my guess? The contenders will be the bosses, showing up close to the 30 day deadline."

"I see," Emma frowned. "So now we just wait?"

"Of course," Princess Astaroth agreed with a grin. "Hurry up and wait is practically the military motto."