During the days he lodged there, Mia came to see Skyl whenever she had a spare moment, but do not think she could take up much of the warlock's time. In truth, it was half an hour a day at most, and that was all the leisure a farmer's daughter had.
She had to help her mother run a small business. They boiled malt and grapes into syrup, mixed in chopped dried gooseberries, poured the candy into little animal shapes, skewered each piece on a thin birchwood stick, then stuck them into a cork block punched full of holes. During the day, she pushed them through the streets and sold candy. Summer brought more customers, which meant more money, and naturally, more work.
On a good morning, everything sold out before noon, and she could even chat with the other girls for a little while. After she got home, she had to tidy the house, wash clothes, make beds, sweep and mop, look after the poultry, keep her grandmother company, and squeeze in time to read and study. One chore chased after another. They were all ordinary little things, but they wore a person down.
A life lived step by step almost felt like a dream. Blink once, and the sun was already setting. Warlock Skyl came back every day right around sunset.
Mia used a red-hot needle to lance the blisters on her hands, then smeared them with herbal juice. People said it kept scars from forming. Once she had made herself presentable, she went to bother Skyl. She knocked on his door, and from inside came a voice.
"Just a moment."
The door was opened by an unseen servant, quieter than a gust of wind. The room's master greeted her from the corner.
"Come in. No need to close the door."
The first thing the visitor saw was the intricate magic array on the floor. Skyl had never tried to hide what it was. If anyone asked, he would answer honestly, it was an array meant to draw an artifact here from a distant realm.
Mia did not understand magic, but she could tell that the materials used to draw the array included silver filings and gold dust. They were just lying there on the floor, as if he was not afraid of anyone stealing them. The array grew more complete day by day, and for the sake of those few precious metals, Skyl had to take on several jobs by himself.
On his second day in Daggerford, Skyl took a militia squad out to clear an orc lair nearby. No one died. He traded the orc heads for a bounty, used a little less than half of it to buy magical materials, a little less than half to drink and eat, and spent the rest on stationery and teaching tools for the classroom he was putting together.
Mia was very curious about Skyl's attitude toward life. In this steady, serious, hardworking farming town, everyone was trying to maintain the life they already had, whether they were farmers, artisans, militia, guild merchants, or the duchess herself. Outsiders, on the other hand, were often restless and flashy. They spent money freely, cared only about the moment, and gave no thought to the future.
Skyl was unlike anyone in Daggerford, and not even much like other adventurers. What set him apart was a proud sort of honesty. Anyone could ask him any question, and he almost never dodged the important part. He simply gave his answer.
Mia sat properly on a chair in the corner and watched Skyl bend down. Silver filings spilled from between his fingers, drawing complex runes and patterns across the floor.
The warlock's motions flowed as smoothly as water. The array was nearly finished.
"You came to me because something is on your mind, didn't you?" Skyl paused his work, clapped his hands, and dusted off a few specks of silver powder. Mia knew her grandmother secretly collected the dirty wash water their guest used each day, like a prospector panning for gold. It made her feel ashamed and guilty.
"Mr. Skyl, do you think I'm suited to be a merchant?"
"That isn't what you really want to ask. The reason you're studying business is only because you want to escape your current life. Daggerford is too small. It can't hold a young soul."
Mia carried the scent of syrup and gooseberries. Her face had the sweet softness of pudding. "Then can you take me with you? I'd be willing to go anywhere with you."
Skyl found it amusing, and at the same time, sad. Girls from poor families were far too easy to fool. Even when they thought themselves clever, the moment they saw the slightest bit of hope, they dared to wager everything they had on it. There were plenty of girls like that in the pay-by-the-hour inns of Waterdeep's Dock Ward.
"I only take in good students," the warlock said.
"Then am I a good student?"
"Half of one." There was laughter in Skyl's eyes. "You still haven't made up your mind to give up your current life. Daggerford may be poor and boring, but life here is stable."
"Sir, what does life mean?"
"Life is an illusion. Many people can see yesterday and tomorrow, even a future much farther away. Take you, for example. You come of age, marry, have children, start doing business with your husband's support, slowly build up your household wealth, and begin hiring more wagons and guards. Your footprints run from Baldur's Gate in the south to Neverwinter in the north. That is about the farthest distance you'll ever travel.
"Business is hard and dangerous. Every now and then, something unexpected happens, something you can remember for the rest of your life. One day, you sell all your wagons and choose to return to Daggerford. Then you slowly grow old and finally die in bed. Looking back on your life, you will still remember tonight, except by then, you'll think this was only a very ordinary conversation."
"But none of that is certain to happen."
"Exactly. That is why life is an illusion. You think life is boring, but that only means it hasn't decided how to punch you in the face yet. So you always have to stay alert."
Skyl's words made Mia laugh. She was a good girl whose smile could make others happy too.
"Then if I stay in Daggerford, I won't get punched?"
The warlock shook his head. "Anyone can get punched. Even I managed to get myself stranded in Wildspace. People at the bottom have never had many choices. That is especially true in this world. On the battlefields of gods, fiends, and legends, mortal feelings are only the stage that holds up the story. Victory and defeat are always decided by a tiny handful of people, or by a fate arranged in advance by powers beyond them."
Mia's face turned pale, but she straightened her chest and said, "No matter what happens, the people of Daggerford won't give up the fight."
"Mm." Skyl nodded approvingly.
He chatted with the bright, pretty town girl. Her cheeks were flushed, and her voice was soft and shy. Outside the window, the streets of Daggerford were lively with noise, and the summer night had clear stars and a bright moon. It almost felt like the opening of any number of love stories, except Skyl's loneliness had seeped into his bones. No one could make his heart waver even slightly.
Duchess Morwen's carriage stopped outside the door. Her sudden visit clearly startled the whole family.
The duchess was no longer young. The hair at her temples had gone gray, and the years had left more than wrinkles on her face. They had also left an authority that made people fear her. As soon as she arrived, she went straight to Skyl's room. Mia quickly excused herself, and the duchess's private guards cleared the family out into the street. No one was allowed near.
Lady Morwen's eyes kept drifting to the magic array on the floor. Daggerford was a small town. Most people here knew one another, but that also meant there were no real secrets.
"Mr. Skyl, I have heard of you. You are a very capable adventurer. Daggerford welcomes outstanding talents who wish to settle here, but only on the condition that they do not harbor ulterior motives or commit evil in secret."
Skyl sensed something strange from the duchess, a faint, almost inhuman quality. He had no intention of meddling, but he also lost interest in speaking with her.
"I won't be settling here. I'll leave soon, within a month at most."
"And yet you are setting up a classroom and gathering students? I thought you would be staying for at least a few years." Lady Morwen's tone was gentle.
"Consider it a bad habit of mine." Skyl sat in his chair with a warm smile. "Wherever a bee flies, it can't help stopping on flowers and spreading the pollen of knowledge. Come to think of it, my old headmaster's nickname was the Old Bumblebee."
"I thought all mages were cold."
"No. I'm a warlock. My job is to recruit companions."
The duchess's gaze sharpened. "Whom do you serve?"
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