Chương 86: Outlaws

We didn't stop running until we'd cleared the city walls. We decided to go towards the farthest gate. I didn't know how information sharing between NPCs worked, but I figured that would be the last part of the city that would have heard the news. I was right; the guards there hadn't received word yet, and we'd slipped through in the chaos of evening traffic. I knew that it was only a matter of time before Calian's version of the events would spread through the city guard like wildfire.

Four adventurers escaping Tidemark, and two knights are dead. Murder. I felt a strange knot in my stomach. The knight-captain cut through his own men in seconds. This didn't just mean he was ruthless, but also a good bit more powerful as well. Not to mention… Wasn't he an archer? It looked like Calian identified as sort of a hybrid class, capable of using both bows and swords to a great extent.

We found shelter in a copse of trees about a kilometer outside the city, far enough to avoid immediate patrols but close enough to see Tidemark's lights glittering in the distance. A notification pulsed in my interface, demanding attention. Your reputation has changed! People of Tidemark: 21 → -51 You are prohibited from entering settlements of Tidemark region. Getting caught will result in Jail time. Count's Retinue: 10 → -40 You are shunned by the men of Count Vizgrad.

Warning: reputation is constantly decreasing due to ongoing circumstances! Tidemark Rebels: 0 → -100 This faction considers you a mortal enemy. Note: Completing the quest "The Tidemark Trident" will restore your reputation to previous levels, with additional bonuses based on success rate. I dismissed the notification, but the weight of it lingered. We couldn't enter any town, village, or settlement in the entire county. Guards would turn us away at best, arrest us at worst.

"Everyone get the reputation hit?" Athos asked grimly. Three confirmations. We were all in the same boat.

"So what now?" Kara slumped against a tree, the weight of the situation evident in every line of her body.

"We have the Trident, we're fugitives, and the recoronation is Sunday. That gives us... what? Half of today and all of tomorrow to fix this?"

"Less than that," Lothras said.

"The Count's Retinue reputation is dropping. If it hits -51, we won't even be able to approach them without being attacked. We have a window, but it's shrinking." He was right. The reputation system worked on a -100 to 100 scale. From the looks of it, most categories were county-based, but some of them, like my reputation with the "Church of Ravenloft," applied to the whole kingdom. From -26 to -50 reputation was the "Shunned" level; the level we had with the Count's retinue right now.

If it drops to the next level at -51, we will be prohibited from speaking to the Count at all. This was still an opportunity to check my current reputation level across the game. I went from 21 to -51 with the "People of Tidemark" faction, from 0 to -100 with the "Outlaws of Tidemark", and from 10 to -40 with the "Count's Retinue". Church of Ravenloft: 5 Merchant Companies: 0 Adventurer's Association: 5 Forest Folk: 10 My Church rep was due to helping the priest get out of the collapsed chapel.

As for the Association, Silver rank equaled 5 reputation points, and the Stag quest bumped up my goodwill with the Forest Folk by 10. I wasn't very worried about my negative reputation all across the county; if we succeeded in the quest, that would all sort itself out. If we didn't… If we somehow failed in restoring the order, we'd have a couple of options.

Jail time helped with the negative reputation, though from what I've read on the forums, it was pretty much a compulsory "cooldown period"; if you logged in, you'd have to spend time in a cell. Not a fun time, for sure. However, time advanced even when you were offline, so most players who got themselves into trouble with the law simply prioritized their IRL lives for a while. It definitely meant losing valuable time, which was really bad if you were a competitive player, but it beat laying in a cell for days.

We could also move to a different county. It would be problematic, and we'd still need to clear our names somewhat, but it was doable. The author's content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

"We need to act fast." Athos straightened, his hand resting on his sword hilt.

"I can rally Second Wind. Lothras, you have contacts in Crimson Court. Between our two guilds, we could—""No." I cut him off.

"Absolutely not."

"Orion—""Think about it, Athos. What exactly would we do? Storm the city with a couple hundred players? Fight our way to the Count?" I shook my head.

"First, that doesn't prove our innocence—it makes us look exactly like what they're saying we are. Second, the city guard and military NPCs are way higher level than any of the players. We'd be sending them to slaughter. Even if we're immortal, it would be a one-sided massacre for quite a while. And third..." I paused, making sure I had his attention.

"We'd be starting a war between players and NPCs. That's not just a bad idea. It's wrong. Those guards aren't our enemies. They're just doing their jobs based on false information. And they are not immortal." I thought of the two dead knights. They wouldn't respawn at the city church. Athos's jaw tightened, but he didn't argue. He knew I was right.

"So we talk our way out," Kara said.

"Great. Talk our way out of a murder charge against the word of the county's most decorated knight. Should be easy."

"We need proof," Lothras said.

"Or we need someone with enough credibility to vouch for us. Someone the Count would actually listen to."

"Who? Calian was our contact. He was supposed to be our credibility." The question hung in the air. Who would believe us over a level 70 knight with years of loyal service? Then it clicked.

"Cathe," I said. The others looked at me.

"Calian's squire?" Athos raised an eyebrow.

"She's his subordinate. Why would she—""Think about it. When we first arrived in Tidemark, who was handling the Count's morning hearings? Cathe. She was the one managing petitions and scheduling." I started pacing, the pieces falling into place.

"I don't think she was originally Calian's squire. I think she was the Count's aide first, and then got assigned to assist Calian."

"That's a lot of assumptions," Lothras observed.

"Yes. But it would make her closer to the Count than to Calian. Her loyalty would be to the crown, not to one knight." I stopped pacing.

"And she seemed... genuine. When we interacted, she wasn't playing politics. She actually cared about doing her job well."

"Even if all that's true," Kara interjected, "how does it help us? She's either with the Count on his tour, or back in Tidemark, where we can't go."

"Her level can't be that high. She's a squire, an administrator. If we can get close enough to talk—actually talk, not fight—our Presence stats might be close enough that she'll hear us out."

"And if we're wrong?"

"Then we're no worse off than we are now." Lothras was quiet for a moment, calculating.

"The Count's tour," he said finally.

"He should be in… Maelridge by this evening, right? The last two villages, Mudhelm and Twinsong, are the last stops tomorrow, before returning to Tidemark. If Cathe is with him, that's where we'd find her."

"And if she's in Tidemark?" Athos asked. I looked at the city lights in the distance.

"Then someone needs to sneak in and find her." The implications settled over us. We'd need to split up.

"Lothras and I will track down the Count's retinue," Athos decided.

"His armor would draw more attention, and I'm not much of a rogue, either. Better we stay in the countryside."

"That leaves Orion and me for the infiltration," Kara said.

"Wonderful. Sneaking into a hostile city with guards actively looking for us. My favorite activity."

"You're a Bard," I pointed out.

"If anyone can talk their way past obstacles, it's you."

"Sweet-talking guards who want to arrest me for murder. Sure. No problem."

"We need to move," Lothras interrupted.

"Every minute we waste is another tick on that reputation counter. Athos, we should head east immediately. If we push hard, we might catch retinue before they call it a night." Athos nodded, then turned to me.

"If you find Cathe in the city, contact us."

"Will do. The moment we have something, you'll know."

"Same from our end." He clasped my shoulder briefly.

"Don't get caught."

"Wasn't planning on it." Lothras offered a small nod to Kara and me, then the two of them set off into the darkness, heading east toward Maelridge, which left Kara and me alone, staring at the distant lights of Tidemark.

"So," she said after a long moment, "any brilliant ideas on how to sneak into a city that's actively hunting us?"

"I do, actually. It should work relatively flawlessly."

"That's reassuring." She moved to stand beside me, close enough that our shoulders almost touched.

"You know, when I imagined spending a Friday night alone with you, this isn't exactly what I had in mind." I felt my face warm.

"Kara—""I was thinking less 'fugitives on the run' and more 'candlelit dinner, maybe a moonlit walk.'" She glanced at me, a teasing smile playing at her lips.

"Though I suppose sneaking through dark alleys together has its own kind of romance. Very intimate. Lots of pressing against walls, hiding in tight spaces..."

"Can we focus on not getting arrested?"

"I'm excellent at multitasking." She laughed at my expression, then relented.

"Fine, fine. Business first. But when this is all over, you owe me a proper date. One that doesn't involve murder charges or legendary weapons."

"Deal," I said, if only to end the conversation.

"I'm holding you to that." She turned toward the city, her demeanor shifting to something more serious.

"Alright. How do we do this?" I studied Tidemark's walls, looking for weaknesses. The main gates would be watched, and the harbor would have more patrols. Regardless, a city this size couldn't monitor every inch of its perimeter.

"The eastern wall borders the old quarter," I said, remembering maps I'd studied.

"Less foot traffic, lots of shadowy areas for hiding. If we can get over without being seen, we can move through the back alleys."

"And once we're inside?"

"We find someone who knows where Cathe is. Servants, merchants, anyone; people who know the castle's schedules but aren't important enough to have heard about us yet. If we find one, they can lead us to Cathe. And hopefully she'll believe us."

"That's a lot of 'ifs' and 'maybes'."

"You have a better idea?" She considered for a moment, then shook her head.

"No. I just wanted to make sure you knew how crazy this plan is."

"I'm aware."

"Good." She adjusted her lute on her back and started walking toward the city.

"Then let's go commit some light trespassing. Should be a nice warm-up before we accuse a knight-captain of treason." She was nonchalant, but I could see that the pressure on her was increasing as well. Whatever happened in the next forty-eight hours would dramatically affect not just how we were going to play the game, but also the landscape of an entire county. The lives of thousands of NPCs, potential quests for 2, 000 players, and even the whole hierarchy of the province were at stake.

I was determined to keep the Count on the throne and see Calian answer for his crimes.