[FIRST QUEST GENERATED]
[OBJECTIVE: The princess's brother has made his first move. Identify his true motive and sabotage his plan before the princess is harmed.]
[REWARD: 250 COINS AND 50 BOND POINTS]
[SKILL UNLOCKED: CONTRACT MAKING]
[UPON FAILURE: COST OF EVERY ITEM IN STORE WILL BE 2X]
The price of everything doubling. Let's not screw this up.
I noticed the new bracelet on my right hand. Something was engraved on it, but despite my ability to read every language in this world, I could not make out what was written.
I read the system notification again.
[SOMEONE HAS ATTEMPTED TO BIND YOU TO A SLAVE CONTRACT WITHOUT YOUR CONSENT]
[ACCEPT OR REJECT]
I selected reject. The bracelet slipped off my hand on its own. It would have been useful to have an item description skill right about now. I slid it back on. No notification this time. I repeated the process a few more times without any issue. The system had apparently neutralized its effect.
The notification had pulled me out of sleep. Maren was still sleeping beside me, unaware that her plan had already been found out. She was a spy working for one of the princess's brothers, but which one.
The princess had four siblings: two brothers and two sisters. Her oldest brother was a businessman, much like their mother. The other had a reputation built on combat. Was the older one scheming to put the younger on the throne? The involvement of one of the sisters was also possible.
Time to start the play.
I put sharpness into my voice. "Maren. Wake up."
The sound startled her upright. She pulled the sheet up and looked around the room, not quite meeting my eyes.
I held out my right hand. "Is this what I think it is?"
Her eyes stayed low. "Yes. It is a slave bracelet."
"Who told you to do this?"
"I am sorry. I did not have much choice." She paused. "Tomorrow you need to come to church with me."
I did not press further. I had what I needed. On closer inspection, the pattern engraved on the bracelet matched the one on the bracelet around Maren's ankle.
There was also a strange sensation in my head, like something was slipping just out of reach. The alcohol, maybe. Or a side effect of the aphrodisiac from earlier.
–-_—
In the princess's office, the princess was working through her papers while Kierra assisted beside her.
I walked up to Kierra and held out my right hand, showing her the bracelet. "Do you know what this is?"
Kierra took my hand and inspected it closely. "It is a slave bracelet."
That pulled the princess's attention away from her work. Genuine shock crossed her face. Kierra's expression went tight.
"Who put this on you?" the princess said.
Kierra leaned in and brought her nose close to my wrist, trying to pick up a scent.
I pinched the bridge of her nose. "Don't do that."
She swatted my hand away. "It was Maren. She put this on you. Didn't she."
"She was forced into it," I said, defending her slightly. "I am meeting whoever is behind it at church tomorrow. My guess is it is one of your brothers."
The princess's expression hardened, her voice going cold. "I am coming with you. I will not let anyone bring a spy into my own mansion and walk away from it."
"I would advise against that."
She stood up sharply. "This is not a game, Nolan. I will not let harm come to my benefactor. You should not be pulled into politics."
"I do not understand politics, Princess. But I can see that you acting directly will put me in more danger, not less."
"You are underestimating what that bracelet can do. The moment you stand before the true owner, his words become your will. He will use that against me, against Kierra, against Rivena."
"Say you find him at the church. What then?"
Her anger cooled slightly as logic reasserted itself. "I would have him locked up and punished."
"Do you really think your brother would be careless enough to show himself and get caught?"
She had no answer to that.
Kierra stepped in quietly. "I think he is right. We tried to find information on Nolan and came up with nothing. Your brother will use him as a scapegoat and disappear. We should hear him out."
"Kierra," the princess said, "give us some space. I want to speak with him alone."
Kierra glanced at me. I gave her a small nod and patted her head once. She left without a word.
The princess moved to the window and stood there with her back to the room, looking out at the garden.
"I am sorry, Nolan," she said. "I have pulled you into my family's mess."
I walked up and placed a hand on her shoulder. "You can always rely on me."
She turned and took my right hand, tracing her finger slowly over the bracelet. "But—"
I pulled her into a hug and dropped my voice low. "Do not react. Someone is watching us. Just hold on."
She hugged me back and whispered, "I cannot sense anyone."
"Aside from Kierra and Rivena, is there anyone completely loyal to you?"
A pause. Then, quietly, "No."
"When I release you, turn toward the window and cast something strong enough to injure a person. Aim at the bushes on the left side. Don't hesitate.”
I released her
She slowly turned towards the widows looked at the sky, raised one hand. A small spear of water appeared and released the spell. The spear dashed through the air and vanished in the garden below.
Rivena happened to be passing through the garden at that moment and was able to catch the watcher on the spot. But there had been a second one, outside the range of my ability to detect, i saw a silhouette climb the boundary of the wall and jumped over it to escape the princess also saw him.
We reached the garden where the Rivena has apprehended the spy.
The princess crouched in front of him. Her voice, when she spoke, was very calm. "Who sent you?"
His face turned toward her and locked his jaw, his body went still.
Whoever sent them had trained them well. Well enough to die before they spoke. That kind of loyalty was not bought with money. It was built over years, through fear or devotion or something worse than both.