Though Nick had been unsettled by discovering the ritual circle inside the temple, he hadn't been able to gather any more information, so he grabbed the scales and left, returning to his rooms before dawn made moving around harder.

Pacing back and forth, he tried to convince himself it was okay to leave, that this wasn't his responsibility.

The golden glimmer on the bed made it very hard. Divine relics weren't exactly easy to come by, much less ones that had survived an assassination and a fire.

Sure, they generally tended to be quite resilient, but foreign magic—especially one meant to dispel a domain—should have caused some damage.

From what Nick could tell, the scales were completely untouched. Not even a speck of dust tainted the gold.

"If this is Eztie's attempt to recruit me, I have to say, I'm not the right person. I'm more likely to use this damn thing in a ritual rather than bring justice to whoever did that." He muttered, eyeing the scales.

He wasn't even sure he opposed the destruction of the temple in the first place! Sure, killing the priests was wrong, but honestly, the only reason he wasn't celebrating was because this was his family's fief, and any such attack reflected on them.

"I mean, technically, Quack didn't swear until after the fire, so it's not our responsibility. But then again, I doubt a god would care about such details."

His father would need to do something about it, if only to stop Sashara's priests from taking up arms against a potential heretic faction.

It was kind of hysterical that Nick, who was far from a true believer, now possessed two divine relics: one granted to him by an actual goddess, and the other being the core of what remained of a domain.

These gods are such terrible judges of character. Who even hands out this kind of stuff for free? I am a damn Occultist! I'm supposed to scheme in the shadows to steal these things, not be given them outright!

Hysterics aside, Nick was still unsure how to handle this. If he followed the path taken by whoever had destroyed the temple during the last beastmen attack, he could assume they were moving south, but the lack of anything significant happening in Oakenhallow, despite its vulnerability, made him doubt it.

It was possible that these heretics would move south and become another lord's problem to deal with. But something told him it wouldn't be that easy, at least in the long run.

With a sigh, Nick packed the golden scales and stashed them at the bottom of his backpack, where the Compass of Interesting Times rested.

Hopefully, that damn thing could keep anyone from noticing the actual divine relic he was carrying around. It was still just as slippery and invisible to his senses as it had been when he first got it, which made him pretty sure its origin wasn't mortal. But if he started thinking about that, he'd go crazy, so he decided to put it off.

Nothing ever went wrong with ignoring one's problem, right?

A knock at the door interrupted his spiral, and he opened it with a lazy flick of his hand.

Ezekiel stepped in, as neatly dressed as always despite the early hour.

"Milord, I have come to inform you that Lord Quack has been summoned to a watch meeting regarding the fire, and he apologizes for not being able to break his fast with you. I can have a meal brought to you here, or you can join the household if you'd like."

Nick considered it for a moment. That Quack left at the first chance didn't surprise him. The man clearly resented having to leave his miniature court, so Nick hadn't expected him to offer to travel back to Floria together.

There was also the fact that he still had to visit Yohan, and he doubted he'd leave without being offered a meal. The man had been far too enthusiastic, and Nick was pretty sure his praise yesterday had earned him a lot of business for the foreseeable future.

"I'm not really hungry, but I'd appreciate it if you could prepare some rations for me and my man. We'll leave in a few hours, just as soon as I'm done with a personal matter." He replied, and Ezekiel took that in stride, merely inclining his head.

"I shall inform the kitchen. Hopefully, the Lord will have returned by then, but if your departure is time-sensitive, Lady Quack will be available to see you off. She has a fitting scheduled for this morning, so she will be here." And with that, he bowed once more and left.

Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

That was really smooth. I can see now why nobles have all this staff. It makes everything so much easier to have people take care of everything for you.

Shaking his head, he decided not to dwell on it too much. He probably wouldn't be able to enjoy such luxury for long anyway, considering his plan to leave. It was better not to get used to it.

Nick then briefly visited the stables, where he sensed Homer caring for the horses. The soldier appeared somewhat more irritable than usual, which was saying something, but he showed no signs of physical injuries, so it was likely due to issues with the locals.

"Homer," he called as he stepped in, careful to avoid the bucket of droppings that had been placed next to the door to keep it open.

"Lord Nicholas," Homer answered, not stopping in his grooming of Beth. The frilly seemed to enjoy that very much, going by her closed eyes and rumble-like purr, and Nick didn't want to disturb her, so he kept it short.

"We'll leave by midmorning. The kitchens should be preparing a few meals for us to take on the road, so swing by in a couple of hours. I'll be back soon, but I don't want us to waste more time than we need to," he said, uncaring that a few grooms were badly hiding behind other horses to listen in.

Homer gave a short, sharp nod. "I'll see it done."

And with that, Nick was on his way. He had received an invitation to Yohan's shop, and although he didn't know the man very well beyond a few childhood memories, he wasn't worried about showing up too early.

Weapon shops in towns like these often saw more traffic at night than during the day, so it was very likely they had a rotation of clerks to man the counter.

The instructions he received from one of the manor guards helped him reach his destination without trouble, though he took his time getting there, preferring to walk and take in the atmosphere from the ground.

From what he could see, the townsfolk were still talking about the fire, especially since Eztie was one of the two local deities, the other being Sashara, represented in a small temple on the opposite side of town.

Some even whispered that perhaps it had been her priests who started the fires, given their known tendency for the element and reckless actions, but those whispers seemed to be in the minority, and they were quickly scolded by anyone who heard them.

Still, the fact that such a thing was even being discussed meant that the temple's destruction was unlikely to be forgotten anytime soon.

Quack hadn't been truthful about wanting to stay behind to handle the matter, but he hadn't lied about its importance.

It'll be even worse once word spreads to the Sunlands, where Eztie has a larger following. I expect Honeyton might be visited by the upper clerics to assess the damage and start the rebuilding process.

But then again, with the destruction of the domain, there probably wasn't much they could do besides tearing down the entire structure and starting over. There was just too much pain embedded in the walls.

Creating a domain wasn't something that happened overnight. Building the physical structure might be relatively quick if they had a stone mage, but it could take years for the domain to fully regenerate. At least, unless they called someone very high up.

That, too, would be a hot potato that Eugene would need to handle carefully. Nick was beginning to feel sorry for his father. His elevation to Baron had been a risky gift.

Eventually, he reached the shop he'd been directed to. A sign calling it the "Yohan's Emporium of Weapons and Gear" confirmed it was the right place, and Nick had to whistle.

Yohan, it seemed, had done well for himself. The entire three-story building was his, with only the top floor reserved for private apartments. The first floor housed a vast collection of all kinds of weapons and adventuring gear, like tents and portable cooking kits, while the second contained more interesting inventory, such as potions.

Floria had several shops selling similar items, but even the ones closest to the Adventurer's Guild lacked the sheer variety Yohan's had.

Pushing the door open, a bell rang, and Nick was quickly greeted by a peppy woman with a friendly smile from behind the counter.

"Welcome to Yohan's Emporium of Weapons and Gear! How can we assist you today?"

Nick had to blink, momentarily reminded of Earth's customer service. "Ah, I am here to see Yohan. He asked me to come by."

There was no one else in the shop at that moment, which was understandable since it was that awkward time in the morning when the night shift workers were going to sleep and the day shift workers were leaving their homes.

The woman jumped up, her eyes widening in surprise as she eyed his clothes.

Perhaps I should have worn the suit again? Nick wondered with amusement. It was kind of funny that few people realized he was the son of their lord if he wasn't wearing the most expensive outfit, but that was just how nobles were.

"I will send for him immediately!" She told him, bowing, before turning around and hurrying away as fast as she could without running.

Soon enough, the same man Nick had met the previous evening hurried down the stairs. His clothes were messy, clearly thrown on in a rush, and his thinning hair still hadn't been combed.

"I apologize if it is too early," Nick said, "I have to return home soon, but I wanted to make good on my promise to see you before I left."

"Oh, oh no, Lord Nicholas. Do not apologize. No, no, no. Nothing to apologize for," Yohan rattled off, feeling very uncomfortable with the idea of a lord lowering himself so much.

Ugh, is that something I'll have to be careful of?

"Ah, I had something for you, yes," Yohan muttered, turning around to leave the awkwardness behind. "You said yesterday that your father, Baron Crowley, appreciated my swords. I can't begin to tell you how proud that makes me. So I couldn't send you off without giving you my very best!" He rambled as he looked through several chests of wrapped weapons.

"Ah, is it the special package?" The saleswoman asked, and Yohan nodded frantically.

"It's under the desk, then. You put it there as soon as you got back from the ball."

Before she could even finish the phrase, Yohan lunged toward the desk and stood up with a blinding grin. "Aha!"

In his hands was a long leather-wrapped package. Nick was surprised because, upon inspection, he felt that the weapon was highly attuned to fire magic, so much so that he was pretty sure he could cast a spell through it.

"What is that?" He asked, perhaps with a touch too much curiosity.

"A firestone sword!" Yohan grinned. "Of course, I remember very well your father's specialty. I can only imagine the level of power he can wield now, so only the very best will do! This is a sword crafted from the very best steel of the kingdom, and more importantly, a whole heap of high-quality firestones! Not exactly orichalcum, that's true, but it's the best elemental conductor I could get in these quantities."

Nick nodded, though his mind was fixated on a word. He was vaguely familiar with orichalcum as a mythical material, known for its extreme toughness and mana conductivity. But Yohan had spoken of it as if it were real. "Orichalcum, you say? You wouldn't happen to know how to get some of that, right?"

The merchant suddenly sported a very sly look, and Nick knew he was in for a good haggling session.