Aureliana Beatrix de la Cœur-D'Or

The road to Harthsrost, the sole paved path and the one I am currently traveling on, has been rather clumsily congested by a standing of propped logs and sharpened sticks in what can only be a poor facsimile of a barricade. On its right a watchtower leans precariously lopsided, no doubt hastily erected in response to recent events. It's not something I would personally feel safe climbing, but when I squint against the midday sun I can indeed see a figure atop it. Part of me hopes that they're asleep so I can dodge the bureaucracy, but the more reasoned part reminds me that it wouldn't be a good look to just suddenly appear in town. I stop in front of the tower.

"Hail, and good day!" I greet, shouting just enough to be heard. "I have important business in Harthsrost. May I pass please?"

The silhouette doesn't answer. The silhouette doesn't even move. Asleep? No, a dummy. I become faintly aware of the rustling of bushes as a presence tries - and fails - to sneak up behind me. Three set of footsteps in total. One at my back, one on each flank. Bandits? I pivot in a heartbeat, whipping around on my heel, drawing a knife from my hip, and dropping into a combat stance to face my hypothetical assailants.

"W-watch out!" squeals a male voice to my left, sounding more frightened than prepared. "She's got a knife!"

The three men flinch in unison, the crude spears that they are brandishing rippling all the way to the tip with how badly they tremble. Makeshift 'armor' assembled from kitchenware and scrap metal decorates their forms. They are are visibly strong in a way that speaks to discipline, but they any intimidation factor they might have undermined by their utter lack of confidence and their wide-eyed fixation on the blade in my hand. Not bandits then. Guards. Or 'guards' as the case may be, more likely repurposed farmhands than not.

"Stay on your toes, boys!" the eldest in the middle orders, regaining his composure faster than the other two. "She can't take all three of us!"

"L-look at her face! Ew! Ew!" interrupts the left guard again. "She looks half-dead! I'll bet she's the monster!"

My face. Damn it. Why is it always the face? Do people get one look at it and forget I'm a person too? I suppress my inner scowl and keep my expression placid. There's no time to get into a spat right now, especially not one that's twice as likely as not to turn bloody. I need to take it on the chin, and I do. Slowly, gradually, I begin to lower my knife, making sure I don't make any sharp movements.

"At ease, friends, at ease. Watch. I am putting the knife away." I answer, my voice carrying a disarming silky lilt. "I come on good business, I assure you. I am a monster hunter, here at the behest of someone in need. In fact, I'd dare say we likely share the same employer! Ha!"

I smile as I resheath my knife, hoping my jest lands, and with it, perhaps a tenuous sense of kinship. As if in response the spears waver, then drop. The left guard can no longer even meet my gaze. Success, I suppose.

"Pleased to make your acquaintance. My name is Axe." I introduce peaceably, addressing all three men. "Now, I have business I must attend to. I'm here about the rumors of a monster and wish to speak to those who hired me. Would you be so kind as to let me pass?"

"Oh! Sorry... Um, the barricade, uh... it doesn't actually have a gated piece. I couldn't figure out how to build one." the lead guard admits. "You'll have to just go around. It's not that long, only about a stone's throw into the woods..."

Of course it doesn't have a gate. I wonder how they handle merchant wagons or if they even thought that part through. Ugh. It's going to be a pain in my ass to 'just go around' every time I need to exit town search the outskirts for signs of monster activity. Not to mention I'd like to interact with that douche on the left as little as I can. Maybe I can convince my employer to take the outpost down. I'm sure these men would rather be somewhere more productive as well.

"I see. Thank you." I answer, turning to the right and heading for the treeline. "Keep up the good work, soldiers. I'll let myself in."

Well, that was... pleasant. A fake dummy and an ambush. Honestly I like the spirit of the plan, even if its execution was quite poor. It shows a certain level of ingenuity, panic-born perhaps but ingenuity nonetheless, that I find rather admirable. It also suggests to me that Harthsrost actually has something that keeps them up at night. In other words this could be a real monster. I'll not delight at their woes, but I'll be glad to have some real work instead of chasing rumors and shadows over idiots getting lost in the woods.

The trek around the barricade proves short and uneventful, but the interior of the town is no more welcoming to me than its guards were. Most in the street part dramatically to give me needlessly wide berth. Others just stop in their tracks to scowl at me openly. A few crash distractedly into buildings, caught between reproach and the very human desire to gawk at unusual things. I don't let it get me down. Different village, same old shit. My mind is already elsewhere. I need to mentally prepare myself for meeting with my employer, and I can only hope they're more hospitable than the rest of this place.

I can see the estate coming up on my left, the gates already unlocked and expectant of visitors. I stop in front of it for a second, drinking in at its fancy walls and well-tended gardens. I can feel myself drifting, going back to before, going back to a place I haven't been in in a long, long time. That fountain almost looks like... No, no. Get your head out of your ass, Axe. You have a job to do.

I shake off my stupor and approach the front door, already reaching for the pocket where I stashed the work notice. The notice is important. A monster hunter can't stay in one place almost by definition, so the notices are the only way to reliably get ahold of us. It also helps negotiating pay. I picked up this one off of a merchant three towns over. I make sure to hold it high and proud as I push open the door, hoping that it demands more attention than my face does.

"Hello? Is the lord or lady in today?" I ask, leaning my head in to peek inside but not dirtying the floor with my boots just yet. "Moreover, might now be a good time for an audience? I have come on a request for aid as it relates to certain... monstrous happenings."

The road to Harthsrost, the sole paved path and the one I am currently traveling on, has been rather clumsily congested by a standing of propped logs and sharpened sticks in what can only be a poor facsimile of a barricade. On its right a watchtower leans precariously lopsided, no doubt hastily erected in response to recent events. It's not something I would personally feel safe climbing, but when I squint against the midday sun I can indeed see a figure atop it. Part of me hopes that they're asleep so I can dodge the bureaucracy, but the more reasoned part reminds me that it wouldn't be a good look to just suddenly appear in town. I stop in front of the tower.

"Hail, and good day!" I greet, shouting just enough to be heard. "I have important business in Harthsrost. May I pass?"

The silhouette doesn't answer. The silhouette doesn't even move. Asleep? No, a dummy. I become faintly aware of the rustling of bushes as a presence tries - and fails - to sneak up behind me. Three set of footsteps in total. One at my back, one on each flank. Bandits? I pivot in a heartbeat, whipping around on my heel, drawing a knife from my hip, and dropping into a combat stance to face my hypothetical assailants.

"W-watch out!" squeals a male voice to my left, sounding more frightened than prepared. "She's got a knife!"

The three men flinch in unison, the crude spears that they are brandishing rippling all the way to the tip with how badly they tremble. Makeshift 'armor' assembled from kitchenware and scrap metal decorates their forms. They are are visibly strong in a way that speaks to discipline, but they any intimidation factor they might have undermined by their utter lack of confidence and their wide-eyed fixation on the blade in my hand. Not bandits then. Guards. Or 'guards' as the case may be, more likely repurposed farmhands than not.

"Stay on your toes, boys!" the eldest in the middle orders, regaining his composure faster than the other two. "She can't take all three of us!"

"L-look at her face! Ew! Ew!" interrupts the left guard again. "She looks half-dead! I'll bet she's the monster!"

My face. Damn it. Why is it always the face? Do people get one look at it and forget I'm a person too? I suppress my inner scowl and keep my expression placid. There's no time to get into a spat right now, especially not one that's twice as likely as not to turn bloody. I need to take it on the chin, and I do. Slowly, gradually, I begin to lower my knife, making sure I don't make any sharp movements.

"At ease, friends, at ease. Watch. I am putting the knife away." I answer, my voice carrying a disarming silky lilt. "I come on good business, I assure you. I am a monster hunter, here at the behest of someone in need. In fact, I'd dare say we likely share the same employer! Ha!"

I smile as I resheath my knife, hoping my jest lands, and with it, perhaps a tenuous sense of kinship. As if in response the spears waver, then drop. The left guard can no longer even meet my gaze. Success, I suppose.

"Pleased to make your acquaintance. My name is Axe." I introduce peaceably, addressing all three men. "Now, I have business I must attend to. I'm here about the rumors of a monster and wish to speak to those who hired me. Would you be so kind as to let me pass?"

"Oh! Sorry... Um, the barricade, uh... it doesn't actually have a gated piece. I couldn't figure out how to build one." the lead guard admits. "You'll have to just go around. It's not that long, only about a stone's throw into the woods..."

Of course it doesn't have a gate. I wonder how they handle merchant wagons or if they even thought that part through. Ugh. It's going to be a pain in my ass to 'just go around' every time I need to exit town search the outskirts for signs of monster activity. Not to mention I'd like to interact with that douche on the left as little as I can. Maybe I can convince my employer to take the outpost down. I'm sure these men would rather be somewhere more productive as well.

"I see. Thank you." I answer, turning to the right and heading for the treeline. "Keep up the good work, soldiers. I'll let myself in."

Well, that was... pleasant. A fake dummy and an ambush. Honestly I like the spirit of the plan, even if its execution was quite poor. It shows a certain level of ingenuity, panic-born perhaps but ingenuity nonetheless, that I find rather admirable. It also suggests to me that Harthsrost actually has something that keeps them up at night. In other words this could be a real monster. I'll not delight at their woes, but I'll be glad to have some real work instead of chasing rumors and shadows over idiots getting lost in the woods.

The trek around the barricade proves short and uneventful, but the interior of the town is no more welcoming to me than its guards were. Most in the street part dramatically to give me needlessly wide berth. Others just stop in their tracks to scowl at me openly. A few crash distractedly into buildings, caught between reproach and the very human desire to gawk at unusual things. I don't let it get me down. Different village, same old shit. My mind is already elsewhere. I need to mentally prepare myself for meeting with my employer, and I can only hope they're more hospitable than the rest of this place.

I can see the estate coming up on my left, the gates already unlocked and expectant of visitors. I stop in front of it for a second, drinking in at its fancy walls and well-tended gardens. I can feel myself drifting, going back to before, going back to a place I haven't been in in a long, long time. That fountain almost looks like... No, no. Get your head out of your ass, Axe. You have a job to do.

I shake off my stupor and approach the front door, already reaching for the pocket where I stashed the work notice. The notice is important. A monster hunter can't stay in one place almost by definition, so the notices are the only way to reliably get ahold of us. It also helps negotiating pay. I picked up this one off of a merchant three towns over. I make sure to hold it high and proud as I push open the door, hoping that it demands more attention than my face does.

"Hello? Is the lord or lady in today?" I ask, leaning my head in to peek inside but not dirtying the floor with my boots just yet. "Moreover, might now be a good time for an audience? I have come on a request for aid as it relates to certain... monstrous happenings."

I pause, not wanting to put myself in a position of poor bartering. I'm coming on too strong. They're likely to take me for granted. After all, the biggest mistake those not accustomed to dealing with monsters make is thinking that it's quick, that it's easy, or that it's cheap. I need to backpedal.

"Of course, I would request from your house bed and board, as well as time enough to gather information." I reframe, setting boundaries earlier in a way I hope doesn't come off as confrontational. "Understand that depending on the type of beast and what you know about it or don't, a hunt could take several weeks or even months. I would need to speak to the locals, learn the area, and investigate the scenes of attack. May I come inside? It has been a long day, and I'd ask to be shown a room before and not after any talk of business."

The road to Harthsrost, the sole paved path and the one I am currently traveling on, has been rather clumsily congested by a standing of propped logs and sharpened sticks in what can only be a poor facsimile of a barricade. On its right a watchtower leans precariously lopsided, no doubt hastily erected in response to recent events. It's not something I would personally feel safe climbing, but when I squint against the midday sun I can indeed see a figure atop it. Part of me hopes that they're asleep so I can dodge the bureaucracy, but the more reasoned part reminds me that it wouldn't be a good look to just suddenly appear in town. I stop in front of the tower.

"Hail, and good day!" I greet, shouting just enough to be heard. "I have important business in Harthsrost. May I pass?"

The silhouette doesn't answer. The silhouette doesn't even move. Asleep? No, a dummy. I become faintly aware of the rustling of bushes as a presence tries - and fails - to sneak up behind me. Three set of footsteps in total. One at my back, one on each flank. Bandits? I pivot in a heartbeat, whipping around on my heel, drawing a knife from my hip, and dropping into a combat stance to face my hypothetical assailants.

"W-watch out!" squeals a male voice to my left, sounding more frightened than prepared. "She's got a knife!"

The three men flinch in unison, the crude spears that they are brandishing rippling all the way to the tip with how badly they tremble. Makeshift 'armor' assembled from kitchenware and scrap metal decorates their forms. They are are visibly strong in a way that speaks to discipline, but they any intimidation factor they might have undermined by their utter lack of confidence and their wide-eyed fixation on the blade in my hand. Not bandits then. Guards. Or 'guards' as the case may be, more likely repurposed farmhands than not.

"Stay on your toes, boys!" the eldest in the middle orders, regaining his composure faster than the other two. "She can't take all three of us!"

"L-look at her face! Ew! Ew!" interrupts the left guard again. "She looks half-dead! I'll bet she's the monster!"

My face. Damn it. Why is it always the face? Do people get one look at it and forget I'm a person too? I suppress my inner scowl and keep my expression placid. There's no time to get into a spat right now, especially not one that's twice as likely as not to turn bloody. I need to take it on the chin, and I do. Slowly, gradually, I begin to lower my knife, making sure I don't make any sharp movements.

"At ease, friends, at ease. Watch. I am putting the knife away." I answer, my voice carrying a disarming silky lilt. "I come on good business, I assure you. I am a monster hunter, here at the behest of someone in need. In fact, I'd dare say we likely share the same employer! Ha!"

I smile as I resheath my knife, hoping my jest lands, and with it, perhaps a tenuous sense of kinship. As if in response the spears waver, then drop. The left guard can no longer even meet my gaze. Success, I suppose.

"Pleased to make your acquaintance. My name is Axe." I introduce peaceably, addressing all three men. "Now, I have business I must attend to. I'm here about the rumors of a monster and wish to speak to those who hired me. Would you be so kind as to let me pass?"

"Oh! Sorry... Um, the barricade, uh... it doesn't actually have a gated piece. I couldn't figure out how to build one." the lead guard admits. "You'll have to just go around. It's not that long, only about a stone's throw into the woods..."

Of course it doesn't have a gate. I wonder how they handle merchant wagons or if they even thought that part through. Ugh. It's going to be a pain in my ass to 'just go around' every time I need to exit town search the outskirts for signs of monster activity. Not to mention I'd like to interact with that douche on the left as little as I can. Maybe I can convince my employer to take the outpost down. I'm sure these men would rather be somewhere more productive as well.

"I see. Thank you." I answer, turning to the right and heading for the treeline. "Keep up the good work, soldiers. I'll let myself in."

Well, that was... pleasant. A fake dummy and an ambush. Honestly I like the spirit of the plan, even if its execution was quite poor. It shows a certain level of ingenuity, panic-born perhaps but ingenuity nonetheless, that I find rather admirable. It also suggests to me that Harthsrost actually has something that keeps them up at night. In other words this could be a real monster. I'll not delight at their woes, but I'll be glad to have some real work instead of chasing rumors and shadows over idiots getting lost in the woods.

The trek around the barricade proves short and uneventful, but the interior of the town is no more welcoming to me than its guards were. Most in the street part dramatically to give me needlessly wide berth. Others just stop in their tracks to scowl at me openly. A few crash distractedly into buildings, caught between reproach and the very human desire to gawk at unusual things. I don't let it get me down. Different village, same old shit. My mind is already elsewhere. I need to mentally prepare myself for meeting with my employer, and I can only hope they're more hospitable than the rest of this place.

I can see the estate coming up on my left, the gates already unlocked and expectant of visitors. I stop in front of it for a second, drinking in at its fancy walls and well-tended gardens. I can feel myself drifting, going back to before, going back to a place I haven't been in in a long, long time. That fountain almost looks like... No, no. Get your head out of your ass, Axe. You have a job to do.

I shake off my stupor and approach the front door, already reaching for the pocket where I stashed the work notice. The notice is important. A monster hunter can't stay in one place almost by definition, so the notices are the only way to reliably get ahold of us. It also helps negotiating pay. I picked up this one off of a merchant three towns over. I make sure to hold it high and proud as I push open the door, hoping that it demands more attention than my face does.

"Hello? Is the lord or lady in today?" I ask, leaning my head in to peek inside but not dirtying the floor with my boots just yet. "Moreover, might now be a good time for an audience? I have come on a request for aid as it rela- Oh."

I seem to be interrupting a discussion between the head of the house and another figure who is undeniably another monster hunter. It's enough to make me hesitate slightly. Monster hunters can be a moody bunch - I'd be the first attest to that. Another on the job means having to compete for rewards, and often ends less in working together and more in rivalry and bickering. Still, I've traveled a long way to get here, and I'm in no rush to let a good job go to waste, even if I have to take half pay.

"Excuse me. My apologies. I did not mean to interrupt." I settle, quietly stepping inside. "If the head of the house wills it, may I join this briefing?"

The road to Harthsrost, the sole paved path and the one I am currently traveling on, has been rather clumsily congested by a standing of propped logs and sharpened sticks in what can only be a poor facsimile of a barricade. On its right a watchtower leans precariously lopsided, no doubt hastily erected in response to recent events. It's not something I would personally feel safe climbing, but when I squint against the midday sun I can indeed see a figure atop it. Part of me hopes that they're asleep so I can dodge the bureaucracy, but the more reasoned part reminds me that it wouldn't be a good look to just suddenly appear in town. I stop in front of the tower.

"Hail, and good day!" I greet, shouting just enough to be heard. "I have important business in Harthsrost. May I pass?"

The silhouette doesn't answer. The silhouette doesn't even move. Asleep? No, a dummy. I become faintly aware of the rustling of bushes as a presence tries - and fails - to sneak up behind me. Three set of footsteps in total. One at my back, one on each flank. Bandits? I pivot in a heartbeat, whipping around on my heel, drawing a knife from my hip, and dropping into a combat stance to face my hypothetical assailants.

"W-watch out!" squeals a male voice to my left, sounding more frightened than prepared. "She's got a knife!"

The three men flinch in unison, the crude spears that they are brandishing rippling all the way to the tip with how badly they tremble. Makeshift 'armor' assembled from kitchenware and scrap metal decorates their forms. They are are visibly strong in a way that speaks to discipline, but they any intimidation factor they might have undermined by their utter lack of confidence and their wide-eyed fixation on the blade in my hand. Not bandits then. Guards. Or 'guards' as the case may be, more likely repurposed farmhands than not.

"Stay on your toes!" the eldest in the middle orders, regaining his composure faster than the other two. "She can't take all three of us!"

"L-look at her face! Ew! Ew!" interrupts the left guard again. "She looks half-dead! I'll bet she's the monster!"

My face. Damn it. Why is it always the face? Do people get one look at it and forget I'm a person too? I suppress my inner scowl and keep my expression placid. There's no time to get into a spat right now, especially not one that's twice as likely as not to turn bloody. I need to take it on the chin, and I do. Slowly, gradually, I begin to lower my knife, making sure I don't make any sharp movements.

"At ease, friends, at ease. Watch. I am putting the knife away." I answer, my voice carrying a disarming silky lilt. "I come on good business, I assure you. I am a monster hunter, here at the behest of someone in need. In fact, I'd dare say we likely share the same employer! Ha!"

I smile as I resheath my knife, hoping my jest lands, and with it, perhaps a tenuous sense of kinship. As if in response the spears waver, then drop. The center guard swallows hard. The left guard can longer even meet my gaze. Perhaps I'll try my luck with the right one, the one who has been quiet so far. I turn to them, and offer a slight bow.

"Pleased to make your acquaintance. My name is Axe." I introduce peaceably. "Now, as a non-local, I'm afraid I don't know the area very well. I have business I must attend to and a monster to hunt. Would you be so kind as to act as my guide?"

.