The misadventures of the necromancer

Adar lets out a sigh of relief when, in the distance, what appears to be a cluster of buildings finally comes into view. In this region, it can only be Pinetop—the city he himself had recommended they travel to.

Unfortunately for him, the place seems farther away than he had initially assumed. Resulting in a tense last few days, during which they rested less and pushed themselves a little harder.

Especially as more and more of the baby’s milk began turning sour, that, combined with the fact that after trading for the milk and the new cart, they were now also low on potions—potions that could become very important to sustain the child.

The good side was that the cart allowed them to move a little faster. When Saca grew too tired from carrying her brother, instead of switching with Sena, she could now sit in the cart—lighter than before—while they kept moving.

Nero, having remembered to buy a cart, had turned out to be vital for reaching the city in time. And the potions they had traded away shouldn’t have had much impact, considering Nero could simply produce more. Or at least, that was the idea—until the three of them realized, almost simultaneously, that they hadn’t come across any Angel’s Tears in quite some time.

The herb that was the main ingredient in Nero’s potions had been practically a weed around Dantar. But here in the north, it was far less common, creating a new difficulty. At the very least, Adar hoped that it simply meant they would have to search harder to find Angel’s Tears for their needs.

Fortunately, they had no trouble leaving the Western North Hills, completely avoiding the meeting that had seemed to irritate Nero so much. And as Sena had pointed out:

“The best outcome of the meeting for the clans would be for us to leave. While Nero had made clear that to guarantee that, they only needed to do nothing.”

Well, for almost all the clans. The Vey had seemed disappointed to lose their new source of potions, which was almost amusing after their reaction upon discovering that Nero was a necromancer. But since then, they must have had the opportunity to confirm the quality of the potions.

“Buildings, buildings!” Seres exclaims happily beside him, pointing at the distant structures.

“Do you think we’ve arrived!?” Saca asks hopefully from her seat in the cart.

“Yes, I think we finally have,” Sena confirms as she walks beside it.

“Finally!! So what do we do now?” Seres asks, turning toward Nero, who brings up the rear this time alone, no longer accompanied by the mule as Adar had grown used to seeing.

“We already talked about that, Blondie,” the necromancer replies, slightly irritated, though even he seems lighter, walking with a somewhat more relaxed stride.

“We’ll see if we can find a house outside the city to rent for a while,” he repeats the plan formed along the road.

A plan that leaves Adar just as worried as Seres appears to be. So much so that his expression must reveal something, because the necromancer turns to him.

“Got a better idea, Grumpy? Because I still don’t see how we’re supposed to deal with a kid, while wandering all over the place.”

A question he can only answer with, “No, I don’t, Nero.”

But that doesn’t reassure him. Nor Seres. Even the girls seem uneasy about the idea, clearly aware of the risks they are all about to take.

As Nero had said, they simply had no other safe way to feed the child. The best option was to find a wet nurse. Considering the apparent size of the city ahead, that was almost a certainty.

The plan, therefore, was to rent a house outside the city where they could hide what was, in principle, their greatest risk of discovery—the undead mule.

They had even considered turning off the magic on the mule. But the creature was a major security asset, and they would all feel uncomfortable without it. After all, they slept peacefully, thanks to its nightly vigilance. Besides, Nero had stated that if they later needed it again, they might be left with only bones, which would draw far more attention.

The only problem with the plan, in Adar’s view, is that he doubts the mule is their greatest risk. As long as it isn’t near other animals—which would certainly react—it usually goes unnoticed.

After all, who pays that much attention to a mule? On more than one occasion, the animal had behaved somewhat unnaturally while people nearby never connected it to necromancy.

No—for Adar, the real danger is the necromancer himself.

Nero reacts badly to things he dislikes and tends to be quite vocal about it. Something Adar can understand. After all, who with Nero’s level of power would swallow insults from anyone? Otherwise, what would be the point of having power?

But that very attitude will quickly draw attention. People will begin questioning someone as different as Nero. And Adar expects that sooner or later Nero will lose his limited patience and reveal himself as a necromancer. An occasion that will certainly end badly.

And as if that weren’t enough, there’s the issue of money. They still have more than seventeen gold coins. But with a house, and supporting six people—including the baby, who will need a wet nurse, that he has no idea how much that will cost—well, even though it’s more money than Adar ever dreamed of seeing, it won’t last forever.

If Nero could produce more potions, perhaps they could establish some sort of long-term business… maybe.

“Look, we’ll see how things go. For now, we don’t have many alternatives,” Nero tries to encourage them.

Which somehow worries Adar even more. That isn’t the necromancer’s usual reaction. Complaining about the world in general would be what Adar expected to hear.

Nero himself either doesn’t notice the strangeness—or chooses to ignore it—and continues.

“Look, over there…” he says, pointing to a bend in the road ahead. “We’ll leave Blondie and the cart there…”

“Blondie, you’ll wait for us there. Remember to unhitch the mule. If there’s trouble, it’s better if she isn’t tied down,” he calmly instructs Seres, who nods. Even he must understand that the mule will be his best defense if Nero isn’t nearby.

“Meanwhile, we’ll enter the city,” he announces to the rest.

“Grumpy, do you have the money?” Nero asks.

“No, it’s still on the mule.”

He stops, waiting for the mule to catch up. The safest place to keep their reserves is on the animal itself, not the cart.

If things go wrong, the cart could be stolen. But the mule? He would not want to be the poor fool attempting that—especially once they realize they’re dealing with an undead creature.

He retrieves the pouch from around the mule’s neck and takes out the smaller bag containing the money they agreed to bring into the city. As he does, he remembers another time he carried their funds. Turning to Nero with an old concern, even after all the time that has passed.

“Are you sure I should be the one carrying it?” The question clearly reminds Nero as well of the day Adar was robbed in Dantar.

“Yes… You’re not taking all of it, are you?” Nero asks.

“No, only what we agreed.”

“Then… you go with it,” Nero says after a slight hesitation, clearly thinking about a repeat of that incident. “Just be careful.”

This prompts Saca, still in the cart, to ask, “What happened?”

“Nothing. Don’t worry. Let’s move on,” Adar answers, while Seres and Nero thankfully say nothing more.

They soon reach the spot where they separate from Seres. And so, they continue together toward the city, while he starts unhitching the mule.

On the way, Nero suddenly says, “Grumpy, the girls should take some money.”

He must be referring to the fact that when inside the city, the girls are supposed to go alone to search for a wet nurse—something he and Nero would not be particularly helpful with. In fact, Adar suspects Nero might be actively counterproductive.

Two girls carrying a baby and a tragic story would likely soften some hearts quickly. Still, Nero is right—money will make things easier.

So Adar retrieves three large silver coins from the pouch hidden inside his cloak and hands them to Sena, whose hands are free and who will likely handle any negotiation.

“Here.”

He pauses when he sees her wide eyes. Realizing she may not be accustomed to handling coins of such value, even he, before Nero, would rarely encounter one, so he adds carefully:

“Be careful. Don’t start by showing the coins…”

He waits to confirm she’s listening.

“Wait until negotiations have begun. They will be useful to show you can pay and close the deal…”

He hopes they won’t be cheated. Both have proven clever so far.

“But if you show them immediately, you’ll just mark yourselves as easy marks. And people will then drive up the price.”

She nods, hopefully understanding.

“We’re almost there!” Nero announces as the gates of Pinetop come into view.

From where they stand, they can see the large wooden gates open, flanked by two moderately tall towers with guards watching from above. Entry appears controlled by a couple of guards, causing a small line to form. In the end, it appears to be a city roughly the size of Dantar—a place Adar knows fairly well. And he believes that knowledge will translate to where.

As they move toward the queue, he takes a deep breath, preparing himself for what lies ahead—hoping, at least, that things won't blow up in flames.

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