Wilhelm of Crosswall was born and raised in Crosswall, a small but idyllic town located in the Dukedom of Colgrave, which itself was a pleasant expanse of forest and farmland found in the central areas of the empire. His father was a ranger and a huntsman who managed Duke Colgrave’s forests. His mother was an herbalist who crafted potions and healing poultices. Wilhelm was taught from an early age how to hunt beasts, gather wild herbs, and travel through the paths of Colgrave’s forests like they were the halls of his own home. He learned both the bow and the blade and by the time he was fourteen, he had shown such exceptional skill that Duke Colgrave had invited him to train with his personal guard. Along with his lifelong friend, Ludger, Wilhelm studied the sword and shield under the tutelage of the Duke’s best men and was widely anticipated to become the next man-at-arms for the dukedom. When he was fifteen years old, he rescued a griffon hatchling from poachers and raised the magic beast as his own companion. When he was sixteen years old, he and Ludger tracked down a group of bandits and captured all ten criminals by themselves, fighting grown men with classes despite not yet unlocking their own. When he was seventeen, he retrieved a rare magical flower from the depths of a monster-infested cavern so that his mother could craft an alchemical cure to a disease that was plaguing the countryside.
And then, when he turned eighteen, Wilhelm became the Hero.
“Latest reports state he is now CLR ninety-eight,” Vraekae continued her explanation after taking a sip from her cup of hot tea. “That may have changed, though, since those reports are a month out of date.”
“He levels fast,” Aila commented as she set the kettle back on the fire. “Do you have any information on his specific class details?”
“Most of his details have been well hidden by both the temple and the emperor,” Vraekae shook her head. “Those he has shared information with are being very tight lipped. He is capable of casting magic, though, and has exceptional skill with the sword, as one would expect considering the gift given to him by Valtar.”
“I know that he is not capable of healing himself or others,” Eir chimed in. “At least, that’s something I overheard from the priests I’ve spoken to. Not that I think he would need the ability, since his Oracle is a powerful healer, and his Paladin can do some healing as well.”
“Not as good a healer as you, I’m sure,” Dys smiled at Eir, though her expression fell a little at Eir’s frown.
“If what I have heard is true, I am nowhere close to being as skilled as she is, though I hope I will one day compare favorably.”
“I find it hard to believe anyone could be a better healer than you,” Dys told her elven lover with full sincerity. “Not even someone who accompanies the Hero.”
“Heroes often have a way of attracting powerful souls to them,” Eir smiled as she held her own cup of tea between her hands. “Wilhelm is no exception. Lady Jocelyn was already a powerful cleric even before meeting the Hero. Once she joined his side, she became an Oracle and her powers grew to astounding heights. The same can be said of all of his companions. They are all more powerful than you may suspect.”
Dys sat back on her haunches, contemplating what Eir had said and what she’d learned of the Hero so far. While everything she’d been told made the man sound like, well, a hero, that didn’t necessarily give her much confidence about their future interactions. Just as Vraekae had warned, Wilhelm the Hero sounded like he was the last person Jadis wanted to have as an enemy.
When Jadis had asked Vraekae to tell her what she knew about the Hero and it became clear that the explanation was going to take a while, she had gotten Aila and Eir to join her in the small office so she could get their opinions on the matter. The large basket that Hans had brought had not only contained meat pies, but also a tea kettle and a few other small snacks, which Jadis had passed around so they could refresh themselves while they talked. The rest of Fortune’s Favored continued to inspect the new building and discuss future plans, but since the talk looked like it was going to take longer than originally anticipated, she told Nevan, Orla, Tegwyn, Gunnar, and Hans that they could leave if they had other plans to attend to. None of them left, which Jadis appreciated as a sign of their support.
Sometime before a full hour had passed, Jadis remembered that Roy and his knights were outside, so she invited them in out of the cold. Not that it was much warmer inside of the empty stone building, but Thea went to one of the workshops next door and purchased a load of wood. With Bridget and Sabina’s help, she got fires going in all the different fireplaces throughout the structure.
With the place warming up, it was a lot easier to have a long discussion with Vraekae, Aila, and Eir about what they knew of the Hero. Most of what they talked about were stories of his past deeds, which gave Jadis a pretty good idea of who he was as a person. By all accounts, he was a skilled swordsman, a strong leader, and a kind soul. A man who had a great deal of respect for nature, but also focused on the laws of man and justice. Apparently, he’d been offered a Hero class by both Valtar and Villthyrial but had chosen Valtar because he considered doing so as his duty to the empire.
Of course, those stories were all the kinds of stories that everyone around the empire and probably the rest of the civilized world knew about Wilhelm the Hero. That meant a lot of it was probably affected by propaganda, at least in part. If the tales of Wilhelm’s life could be believed, he had been quite the perfect young man, which Jadis doubted. No one was perfect, least of all teenagers who were still growing and trying to find themselves.
And then there were the Hero’s companions. Ludger the Bulwark. Jocelyn the Oracle. Tiernan the Arch-Wizard. Lucia the Paladin. Amarantha the Mystic. Halvor the Berserker. Rein the Lancer. All of them were young yet formidable individuals who already had stories circulating throughout the empire praising their great power and heroism. A few unlocked their primary classes alongside Wilhelm and thus gained a Hero-influenced class from the very start, like Ludger and Tiernan, while others already had strong classes and became even stronger when they joined up with the Hero like Jocelyn and Rein. Regardless, all of them were capable of turning the tide of a battle all on their own, and when working together they were virtually an army unto themselves, if the stories were true.
Considering what Jadis knew she and her own companions were capable of, she saw little reason to doubt those stories.
“So, with everything we know about Wilhelm and his buddies,” Dys spoke after a long silence, “what are the odds that he will just, I don’t know, instantly decide he hates me and if he does, what kind of trouble is that going to get me in?”
“You haven’t done anything wrong that would cause him to hate you,” Eir protested. “The Hero is regarded as a fair man. Kind and just in his ways. He would not hate someone who has done so much good as you have, Jadis. He has no reason to.”
“Aside from the fact that you’ve been arrested for possible connections to Samleos’ cult under the orders of First Prince Hraustrekr,” Aila said mildly. “And then there’s the fact that you actually do have a Demon for a companion. And you’ve also been given a mission to end the war by another god, which has got to be at the very least confusing for the man already chosen by Valtar to do that.”
“Also, his closest friend’s soon-to-be-wife will likely be whispering poison into his ear against you,” Vraekae added helpfully.
“Right,” Dys nodded. “So. With all that said. What do we think? How is this going to play out?”
There was some silence between them as the gathered women thought over their responses. After taking a sip of cooling tea, Vraekae was the first to speak.
“I have never met the Hero, but from what I gather, he is not a politically savvy individual.”
“No?” Dys raised an eyebrow at the comment. “You mean he’s like me?”
“I would not go that far,” she replied dryly. “However, he is a commoner. He was not raised in the courts and had little interaction with court intrigues. That could mean that he is susceptible to clever manipulations, but it could also mean that he is less likely to put much stock in the rumors that abound in high society, if he even listens to them at all. I think, based on what I have heard of the man, that Wilhelm is more likely to base his opinions on what he experiences himself, directly, than on second-hand tales.”
“I hope so,” Dys nodded along to Vraekae’s assessment. “I’m sure my first impression has already been ruined by whatever rumors the first prince has been shoveling in his direction. Hopefully he won’t buy into all the bullshit.”
Tapping her fingers on her knee, Dys paused a moment before asking another question.
“What about his companions? I mean, sure, Ludger is going to have Elodie at his elbow, but is he the kind of guy who’s going to believe everything that she says without question? And what about the other companions? Are any of them likely to cause problems?”
“The rumors that I have heard say that Ludger has pined after Elodie ever since he was a young boy,” Vraekae explained. “She would visit her grandfather’s duchy every summer and Ludger would often see her during that time since he trained with the duke’s guard, just like Wilhelm. An unrequited love that has against all odds been realized now that Ludger is the Hero’s Bulwark.”
“Fancy that,” Dys commented sarcastically. “Elodie finds her true love right under her nose. I’m sure it was only an afterthought that the guy has become massively important and she totally would have married him if he wasn’t the Hero’s best friend.”
“Indeed. Other than her, the only other one of Wilhelm’s companions that could have a problematic connection that I have been able to find is Rein.”
“Rein?” Aila asked. “The Lancer? What issue could he have with Jadis?”
“Likely none,” Vraekae turned her gaze onto the redhead. “However, Rein is a distant relation to General Jorvald, a staunch supporter of Prince Hraustrekr. Their familial connection is tenuous, but Rein does come from a branch family that is loyal to Jorvald. He will likely be inclined towards supporting his family and, by extension, the first prince. How much that will affect the Hero, I cannot say. But that is at least one more person that he trusts who has good reason to speak against you.”
“And so what if he does?” Dys asked with a huff. “I mean, I get it. The Hero and his companions may or may not take some exception with me due to the political manipulations of people who are opposed to me for their own dumb reasons. What I want to know is, what happens if he does decide he doesn’t like me and wants to oppose me the way Egilhard and Hraustrekr do? What does that mean for me?”
Aila and Eir looked uncomfortably at each other while Vraekae’s cold expression remained unchanged.
“Well?” Dys asked again. “What, is he going to be able to just cut my heads off and no one will care?”
“No,” Eir said immediately. “No, he cannot do that. The hero has a great deal of influence, but he cannot go around killing people without cause. Valtar would not choose someone to represent him who would do such a thing, anyway.”
“You could become a pariah,” Aila frowned. “No one would want to do business with someone who the Hero disfavors. If the Hero shuns you, in a way, it would be like being shunned by the gods themselves.”
“It would not be that simple,” Vraekae corrected Aila. “Jadis has been chosen by one of those gods. She has an Oracle with her. She is the last known living Nephilim and is thus an Avatar of Lyssandria. If the Hero chooses to shun her or worse, it could cause a schism in the temple.”
“A schism?” Dys echoed faintly.
“Yes,” Vraekae nodded with a detached tone that sent a chill down Jadis’ spines. “The Temple of Lyssandria would not withdraw their support from you, even under those circumstances. Destarious’ temple would not either in all likelihood. Valtar’s temple, on the other hand, would undoubtedly support the Hero. There would be division. Depending on how certain people interpreted their duties to their patron deities… It could lead to a holy war.”
“A holy war?” Dys exclaimed, her mind reeling at the suggestion. “Over me and the Hero not liking each other? Are you fucking for real?”
“You are representatives of the gods,” Vraekae replied calmly. “You are not a Hero, but as the high priests of the temples have already been discussing, you are the closest thing to a Second Hero that has ever occurred. Your existence is an apparent disparity in the will of the gods. If you and the Hero take exception to each other, worst case scenario, it could be interpreted by some as a proxy war being held by the gods. There are those in the world whose reaction to that idea would be to wage war on behalf of the gods, for one side or another.”
Dys stared at Vraekae, momentarily at a loss for words. The elf’s declaration that Jadis’ existence could literally cause a holy war depending on how the Hero and the people who surrounded him reacted to her was insane. Completely insane. Which was why it made way, way too much sense.
D really did want her to shake things up, didn’t he?
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