“If you can find me a room near other people, I’d appreciate it. The sound helps me orient myself inside a building.” Cyrene informs Cain once he sets her down in the garden of the Manor, looking a bit embarrassed, not knowing there’s nobody around that might have seen her in the arms of the local Lord and misunderstood.
Her sense of propriety is a great relief to the others, who have become used to the rather blatant shamelessness that seems to have infected half of the Upper Nobility. Though it’s mostly due to her class and the obstacles it has caused in her life, Misha feels she’s much more like a lost puppy they’ve taken in than a Noble’s daughter.
“That’s not a problem. I can also assign you a maid if you’d like. Someone to escort you wherever you need to be. We can talk about the details in the morning, but I’d like you to join my Guild, the Darklight Host.” Cain offers in a light tone, trying not to offend her by offering too much assistance.
“Thank you. I already know I’ll accept, but I appreciate the offer of time to think.” Cyrene smiles back, only a third turn away from actually looking in Cain’s current direction.
“That’s perfect then. Will there be any issues with your family? I can likely work out a business deal that involves you joining my guild as a sign of trust.”
“No, I’ve got it all sorted out. I told my sisters I found a home for the blind, and they took out a great deal of money to help me move away from the family home. I only need to drop in for the important holidays so grandma doesn’t get upset.” Cyrene smiles, content that she’s managed to set herself up for an easy life.
“What happens if we level you to the first advancement?” Misha asks curiously.
“I have no idea. I can’t see most of the effects of my own choices. But I should get to choose a new class, though I would likely still be blind unless it’s a class that fully overwrites the Oracle class.”
[Is there a dungeon in the valley?] Cain asks Svetlana and then sends a Guild invitation to Cyrene.
[Cyrene has joined the Darklight Host]
While he waits for Svetlana to answer, Cain sends out a Guild message. [Do we have a nonvisual navigation skill that an oracle can use?]
Svetlana answers first. [There is one, level 200, in the hills by the dam. I believe Damien said it was full of Ogres.]
Ah, Ogres. That brings back memories. If it’s a level 200 dungeon, it should be easy enough to complete without recalling any of his summons and safe to bring Cyrene through.
Hopefully, at level 100, she can get a class that eliminates her blindness, but if not, there is bound to be an option to help her get around independently. They’ll just need to find it.
Giving her a full-time attendant is no problem, and he intends to do it anyhow, but it would really help her self-confidence to at least get around the Manor on her own.
[There’s a copy of Sonar in the Guild Bank now. A duplicate from our library, and Red says she should be able to use it.] Kone sends a few seconds later.
[Sonar] sensory skill usable by all classes. Rank C. Range 5 meter radius from the user in all directions.
That’s close to perfect, at least indoors where things at a further distance won’t matter much. Cain withdraws the book and sits down to make a copy at the inscription desk he keeps in his inventory while Cyrene explains some of the strange visions she’s had over the years to Misha and Mythryll.
They learn that an Oracle’s visions rarely have anything to do with the Oracle herself and instead usually focus on important national or regional events. During the succession wars she gave a lot of warnings about ambushes and attacks, hoping that someone could interpret them and pass them along. How successful she was, nobody bothered to tell her.
Once the short-term duplicate skill book is finished, Cain pokes Cyrene in the side with it.
“Use the book.” He says as she holds it with a confused look.
The book vanishes, and she gets a startled look. “Sonar? That’s a great idea. But where did you find a skill book? My sisters said they’re super rare and almost impossible to copy.”
“They really don’t like you, do they? They’re fairly rare, but Cain made that copy for you while we talked. The Guild had an original copy in the Library. It’s not the best since you can only detect objects less than five meters away, but now you should be able to safely walk around the house without help.” Misha’s speech makes Cyrene cry again and hug her so tightly that the Oracle lifts herself off the ground when Misha moves.
“I’ll station a puppet maid in your room tonight. If you get up first, she can give you the grand tour or bring you breakfast.” Cain informs their newest member.
“I appreciate it. This place seems lovely. But it will be interesting living as an oracle here; now that I have Sonar, I’m not lost all the time, and it’s not so bad being blind. Plus everyone is happy, so I might not get another vision at all.” Cyrene jokes.
“Well, if you need one, just ask. I’ll give you a spanking or something.” Cain laughs, and the Oracle turns bright red.
“I’ll keep that in mind.”
Misha wraps an arm around Cyrene and whispers something that makes the oracle laugh before pointing at the window that makes up most of the wall, starting at knee height. “Now, let’s go see my room.”
“That’s a large window. I’ll guide you around tonight, but be sure to ask the maid for help tomorrow, so you don’t fall in the hot tub or something.” Misha says, shaking her head.
“Sonar isn’t as easy as I expected. I only know everything by shapes and feel, and that is shaped like a door.” Cyrene apologized while turning to follow Misha.
“I know it will be a steep learning curve, but it’s better than nothing. I still can’t believe your family hid the fact that this type of skill exists. I mean, it’s not as great as seeing, but you could have been using it to navigate since childhood.” Misha mutters, angry about the injustice on Cyrene’s behalf.
The Oracle is overjoyed at the room in the Guild wing that she’s brought to. Being the unwanted one among many siblings, she has always had to share a small space. Now, she’s got a full-sized bedroom all to herself.
Cain summons another of the maid type Elven Dolls, and sets her besides the oracle. “This is Cyrene, who is adjusting to her new vision skill [Sonar]. Escort her around the house when she asks and help her with anything else she needs, like making it to breakfast on time.”
If they’re going to wake him up every morning for breakfast, the Puppets can wake everyone up for breakfast.
Cain notices during breakfast that Mythryll seems to be in a much better mood than usual the next morning, coming skipping down the stairs with Nila, both of them still sporting hair damp from the shower and joking with each other.
They’re the last ones ready, he and Misha got up when the maids came to inform them of breakfast, and Cyrene got up before the sun, getting an escort around the property to learn more about her new home.
According to her, having the diverse gardens and the Spa at the entrance to the residential wing is actually beneficial to the blind. The change in smells lets her know exactly where she is, so even when she’s having trouble interpreting the information from the Sonar ability, she can tell what part of the estate she’s in.
The oracle turns out to be quite energetic when she’s around people she is comfortable with, a significant change from the shy and reserved girl Cain first met yesterday, lost at a Royal Banquet.
He has the day off from actual duties today. Maria says they’ve got the security situation under control with her and the King guiding the wings of Dragons and Seraphim around the border regions to clear the Gnolls and any other remaining threats.
With the day off and an unexplored dungeon in his territory, Cain’s plans are set.
“Cyrene, would you like to accompany me and Misha, plus whoever else wants to join, in exploring the Ogre-filled Dungeon in the hills?” Cain asks.
“Oh, that sounds fun. But can I bring my maid? Being in dungeons tends to trigger visions.” She half-jokes.
That makes sense to Cain. Suffering causes her to have visions, and dungeons have a pretty high death toll, even if they’ll all be back tomorrow.
“I can make you a larger bodied escort for the dungeon if you prefer? The Puppets are pretty strong for their size, but they’re still based on Elves.” Cain suggests, but Cyrene waves him off.
“We will be fine, It’s not like I’ve got any combat capability, so I’ll just be standing back while you fight. It should be exciting to see it with [Sonar], though. I never understood tactics because I could never see what they talked about. I don’t even know how big an Ogre is.”
This trip is going to be quite the learning experience for her, so they set off on foot, leaving Mythryll at the Spa to relax for the day and get her nails done by the Puppets, who seem intrigued by the prospect, having never done it before. The tools and supplies are all there from the previous owner, though, with instructions, and they’ve hopefully got a skill that applies to the work of a beautician.
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