The Crucible Campaign

13: Hero's Forge

.^^ The Concept, (scaled down)  ^^

— Caroline —

I gazed at the empty lot in front of me, where the had been a building, before, but had apparently been demolished, when a dragon had been killed above the city by an overzealous guard. Its crash-site hadn't been rebuilt, yet, which made me grin. "How much for these four lots?" I asked the Magister, who was apparently in charge of all the properties in the city, making sure they stayed within the city sanctions.

I thought of her as little more than the president of the housing committee in a particularly up-tight suburb, and had commented so to Hildegard when she introduced the younger elf woman. She had nearly coughed up a lung from laughing so hard in agreement and glee.

The woman raised a thin blonde eyebrow. "Four empty lots? Truly? You're sure? Because this is the fourth property you've looked at in the past two hours." She frowned.

"I'm sorry, am I bothering you by making you do your job?" I growled.

She turned her nose up, and scoffed. "It is not my job to escort... people, around the city to gawk at every building on the market!" She glared at me when she said 'people', and Teagan placed a hand on my chest before I strangled her.

"Now now, my dear, let's not harm the snooty bitch, it's only a lot of paperwork." He sighed.

"Excuse me?!?" She nearly shrieked.

"You may ask to be excused all you like, but I'd like to remind you who you are insulting, my dear. My name, if you are somehow not aware, is Teagan Skøll. My mother, Hildegard Skøll, is both Owner and Founder of the Golden Circle, the largest bank in the city. My wife, Caroline Smythesson/Skøll, is an extremely wealthy Lady-Knight who has married into my family, and bore me children whom I adore. We are currently shopping for not a house, but a Family Home; an incredibly important and nigh-permanent decision, which should never be taken lightly or without careful consideration." He nodded kindly, his voice calm and composed.

She nodded, and smoothed her hair back needlessly, as it was still as pristine as when she had arrived. "Yes, well... I suppose it is important to look at all the options, before one makes a decision like this... I suppose I can spare-"

"Exactly the amount of time we need from your positively thrilling workday." He added dryly.

She paused, and then smiled prettily. "Of course, Lord Skøll! I will attempt to fulfill my duties in a way that does not disappoint you in the future. Now what was your question, Lady Skøll?" She asked politely, her new customer-service mask deserving of an A+.

"How much would it be for all four of these broken lots, and what are my building limitations, in the vein of building a very large building, such as a Clock Tower or Defensive Structure?" I asked.

She blinked, looking honestly confused. "You want... to make a Clocktower? That would be prohibitively expensive-... but then again... well, the properties are desolate, and would be bought at 60% of their projected value... seeing as a clock tower is not technically a business, but rather a Public Service, and you are also thinking of adding in a deck for the Guards to defend the city from... that would make it 20% of their projected value..." She hummed, and took out a notebook, looking through several numbers.

"I also plan to run something of a Training Academy out of it, to teach Guards, Soldiers, and anyone else who would like to, all about how to properly maintain weapons in various conditions, to fix and repair damaged weapons with limited supplies, and other basic skills that I believe they could benefit from... I have trained the most Elite Warriors in my country for my entire adult life, and I don't plan on halting that calling just because I've moved to a new country." I added sternly.