Chapter 9 - Oakwood town council

Daylight filtered into Oakwood’s guild house, rousing Eran from his much needed repose. The bright blue sky outside his window signaled to him the twilight hour was nearly over. Sitting up from a sleeping position strained his recovering body.

“I haven’t overslept like this since the time I fell into the river as a child. Catching a cold made me never want to try running across the bridge railing again, but if I could now I’d give it another go.”

Eran lowered his gaze to the monster girl sleeping beside him. Her bandaged hands laid flat across her chest; the medicinal cloth soaked with dark, amber-colored blood. Carefully, so as not to disturb her, he pried off the sticky bandages and cleansed her hands of the sappy fluids that had oozed from her torn flesh. He felt each of her sharp gasps of pain needle away at his heart; a reminder of what had happened the previous day.

“You probably won’t let me say this while you’re awake, but I’m sorry. Next time, you won’t have to throw yourself into harm’s way for me.”

Leafa grumbled in her sleep. It was possible she sensed her treemate’s guilt, and even during a deep slumber she felt the need to reject it.

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The afternoon was a busy time for Oakwood’s marketplace. Farmers from Greenhorn arrived by then, drawing in crowds eager to buy their fresh produce. The bustling town streets provided the perfect opportunity for Eran to do investigative work involving Lady Elizabeth’s quest, however the large crowds were too much for Leafa to handle, so he had to leave her by herself.

A part of Leafa enjoyed being fussed over, but Eran was not the only one who felt restless in their injured state. Leafa spent her time questioning people who wandered by about a couple key figures in the community.

In the time it took for Eran and Leafa to reconvene, four different chimes of the town bell had reverberated throughout the streets.

“Here, like I promised.” Eran sat down next to Leafa holding a candy apple. Its glossy shell reflected her conflicted expression, but her longing led her to lean forward and take a bite.

“It’s sweet! I bet something this good must have been expensive, hm?” Leafa’s eyes narrowed, her grin reminiscent of a hunter watching their quarry wander near their trap.

“I’d say it was worth the price, considering your hard work in Barnesville.”

Upset her prey didn’t jump into the noose, Leafa huffed. “That answer is cheating.” She pushed Eran’s hand until the candy apple pressed against his lips.

“What are you doing? I bought this for you.”

“Uh-huh, it’s mine. That means I can share it with you.”

Eran surrendered, biting into the treat with a smile. “Oh, it is sweet.” He passed the apple back and forth, working together with his treemate to devour it one bite at a time.

“Told you! But more importantly, did you find out anything useful?”

“I did.” Eran procured a notebook from his pocket and read through its contents. “So far we suspected both the head of the Oakwood Logging Company and the current mayor of stealing Lady Elizabeth’s gem. When I asked around the market for people’s opinions on the Trentmoor family, most of them only had positive things to say. Several people also seemed keen on warning me about a man named Simard. Supposedly he’s known for his hatred of the family, so I think it’d be safe to add him to our list.”

“Is he someone important? I heard there’s going to be a town meeting today. The mayor and Swithen will be speaking there, so maybe he will too.”

Eran’s face lit up. “That’s perfect! We’ll be able to judge them for ourselves. Did you hear when it’s supposed to start?”

“The fourteenth hour. Is that soon?”

A singular toll of a bell made Eran’s face go pale. He grabbed Leafa by the wrist, moving with a sense of urgency. “It was half an hour ago! We might still make it if we hurry, come on!”

Clapping sounds emanated from the town hall’s open doors. Several people had gathered within the main chamber, and Eran joined them alongside Leafa.

As a portly man took a bow up front, a woman sitting to his right set down her pen and joined the applause. “That was an excellent speech, Mr. Lacryman. Next, we will have a word from Mr. Swithen of the Oakwood Logging Company. Your time will start when you begin.”

“Thank you Madam Secretary, I will be brief.” A tall, sturdy man rose from his chair and addressed the room with a strong voice. “It pleases the Oakwood Logging Company to know that Mayor Lacryman has developed amicable relations with the Trentmoor family, however there are a few key issues that concern us. Chiefly, since Lord Trentmoor’s departure one year ago, the forest has become an increasingly dangerous place. Each season we pay more and more adventurers to cull the monsters within, a responsibility that Lord Trentmoor saw to personally. Furthermore, the zones Lady Trentmoor so graciously allow us to work in have been shrinking in size. The expansion of the east district is grinding to a halt, and I fear many citizens may lose employment.”

Several men in the audience lowered their heads, their arms crossed and expressions solemn.

From the corner of Eran’s eye, he noticed a scholarly gentleman approach the secretary and write something down on her sheet.

Up front, Swithen turned to address the mayor directly. “Mr. Lacryman, it would be in Oakwood’s best interests to renegotiate our contract with the Trentmoor family. We pay the same dues despite receiving less, and so concessions will be required. If you would be agreeable to a meeting afterwards, I have personally come up with a plan to make negotiations smoother. In fact, it is already underway.” Swithen bowed his head, resulting in gentle applause from the room.

Eran leaned close and whispered to Leafa. “What can you see?”

“Swithen has been stressed the whole time, while Lacryman has been more or less relaxed. That other man is bothering me, though. I’ve never seen someone so… furious.” Leafa subtly pointed out a man who sat to the left of the mayor. His long, dark green hair was tied into a neat braid, and his dignified expression was not betrayed by the anger Leafa saw within him.

“Thank you Mr. Swithen. We will now hear a word from…” The secretary glanced at her notes and scowled. “Treasurer Simard. Your time starts now.”

The green haired man stood tall and proud, spreading his arms with a flourish. “Citizens, I would like to once again remind you how imperative it is that we break away from the yoke placed upon us by the Trentmoors. Just as Mr. Swithen has detailed, they provide us with less and less despite taking the same amount from our coffers. The times in which we must depend upon their supposed generosity are no longer; we must rise as a community capable of standing on its own!”

Simard used sharp hand motions to accentuate every passionate word, but most of the audience were talking amongst themselves.

“It has long been our best course of action to wrest control of Trent Forest. Since I have taken office, not once have they sent so much as a representative to these chambers. Would that not suggest that they are disconnected from our affairs? Therefore, it would only be right of us, a town teeming with honest folk, to own Trent Forest as opposed to the Trentmoors, a singular family whose head is not even present! We have the means, we simply lack the will as a community to take Trent Forest for ourselves!”

Mayor Lacryman leaned forward with his hands folded together. “Pardon my interruption, Mr. Simard. Are you saying we should attack the Trentmoor family, our most trusted and longstanding ally?”

Leafa’s breath hitched. She hugged Eran’s arm against her chest, allowing him to feel her racing heart. “That really upset Simard,” she whispered. “His emotions are scaring me…”

“I would never suggest something so barbaric.” Simard responded with poise.

If Leafa didn’t read Simard’s emotions, Eran would have believed that the mayor’s intervention pacified his treasurer. Instead, he was able to notice the man’s tempered fury.

Simard continued to prattle on about his strong opinions toward the Trentmoor family, repeating himself so often that Eran stopped taking notes on his speech. “And I must stress the importance of this, but we absolutely must develop our military presence. It is imperative to–”

“Time’s up, Mr. Simard.”

At the secretary’s call, Simard bowed to the audience and seated himself to zero applause.

“If there are no further additions then we have one last speaker for the day. Professor Croix, if you are still here then the floor is yours.”

Eran and Leafa simultaneously looked at each other.

The same scholarly gentleman Eran noticed strode forward using long, confident steps. “Good day, citizens of Oakwood. I am Professor Croix, an expert on all things relating to monsters. If you would lend an ear for just a moment, it would be my pleasure to elucidate an issue brought up by Mr. Swithen.”

Leafa relaxed the tight hug she was giving her treemate’s arm. “Simard is starting to feel relieved.”

Professor Croix faced the audience as he fixed his tweed suit and cleared his throat. “I imagine he is correct in his statement that Trent Forest is teeming with monsters more numerous and more ferocious than just a year prior. It is a phenomenon I have personally observed in Heaven’s Fall and even as far north as Leiden. My colleagues in Caelestis tell me similar events are occurring throughout the western deserts. All this to say: I do not doubt your recent troubles, however I would hesitate to pin the blame on the Trentmoor family. All three kingdoms are struggling to quell the insurgence of monsters.”

Discussion regarding the professor’s words erupted throughout the chamber in murmurs. The audience debated whether they should improve the town guard like Simard had been campaigning for.

Mayor Lacryman stood up while slamming a gavel down on the desk. “Settle down, everyone. The council will take Professor Croix’s wisdom into consideration, and there will be plenty of time to have a proper discussion during our next meeting. I would like to personally thank all of you for showing up today, and I wish you all a good rest of your day. Mr. Swithen, we may speak in my office about this plan of yours.”

Eran escorted Leafa outside, watching everyone else trickle out of the town hall. “So, did anyone lie about anything?” Eran asked.

“Mh, twice. When Professor Croix said all three kingdoms were struggling, that was a lie. The secretary also lied about Simard’s time being up.”

“That’s interesting. Maybe he wanted to help the Trentmoor family’s case? What’s more… Simard really believed everything he said, huh?”

“Every word.”

Eran jotted a few extra notes down. “He definitely made it onto the suspect list, but I’m more worried about Swithen’s plan. You don’t think he was talking about stealing the family heirloom, do you?”

“It would explain his stress. Revealing something like that to the mayor could be really bad for him, but it could also be really bad for us.”

“You’re right. Let’s make Swithen our main suspect while keeping an eye on Simard.”

Leafa nudged Eran, glancing back and forth between him and the stragglers filtering out of the town hall. “Look, there’s the professor!” She ran ahead, intercepting the scholarly old man. “Professor Croix! We’d like to ask you some questions!”

“Oho! Curious minds in the pursuit of knowledge; the lifeblood of a teacher. How may I assist you?” Professor Croix smiled at Leafa and Eran.

“A butler from Trentmoor Manor said you might be able to help us out. I have many questions to ask you about monster girls.” Eran said.

“Sir Everglade? Ahhh, you must be the neophyte tamer Miss Rosbin mentioned. It just so happens that I have a prior arrangement to meet with her, and I believe the guild library would be a suitable location for our conversation.”

A groan escaped from Leafa’s throat. “Does it have to be the library? It’s so boring there.”

Professor Croix touched his fingers to his chest, his eyes wide with shock. “My dear girl, a library is a fountain of knowledge; an intellectual bastion!”

“But I can’t read…”

“Then I shall impart upon you the gift of literacy! Come, this is an urgent matter requiring immediate attention!” Professor Croix strode in the direction of the guild house, leaving Eran and Leafa struggling to catch up.