Once everything had been packed into his system inventory, Ye Wei'an quickly took stock of his belongings:
Several changes of formal clothes befitting his status, along with underwear; a dark blue robe with silver runes embroidered on the cuffs, marking him as a War Wizard apprentice; a basic spellcaster's kit; a small pouch of assorted spell components (sulfur, silver dust, bat guano, and the like); a crystal ball to serve as his arcane focus; and a few spare charcoal pencils and sheets of parchment;
Several textbooks from the Battlemage Academy—An Introduction to the Weave and Sensory Training (Seventh Edition), Practical Spell Construction: From Cantrips to Second-Circle Spells, a large-format Introduction to the Eight Schools of Magic (Beginner's Edition), a three-volume set titled A Guide to Common Magical Creatures of the Purple Dragon Kingdom and How to Handle Them, and the previous owner's notes and journal.
A few odds and ends of reading material—The Secrets Beneath the Griffin's Wings, How to Get Rich in Sembia: A Practical Guide for Nobles, three volumes from the Rashemen Tales of the Exotic series, and A Wizard's Familiar: From Choosing to Care.
Last came some personal effects and money: a silver lapel pin engraved with a simplified version of the Summerstar Family crest (marking him as a bastard, and distinct from the official crest), a pendant containing a miniature portrait of his mother, essential toiletries, and a heavy little leather purse holding the 127 Gold Lion Coins he'd scrimped and saved over the past four years.
At first glance, that seemed like a lot of money, but it was a little meager for a spellcaster.
The reason was simple:
In Faerûn, there were countless ways to acquire gold. Dwarves, gnomes, and even Drow from the Underdark continuously mined precious metals deep beneath the earth. Not to mention the powerful high-level wizards, who occasionally "imported" resources from the Astral Plane or the Elemental Plane of Earth.
This world had a far more abundant supply of gold than his old home, which greatly "diluted" the actual purchasing power of gold coins.
Those hundred-odd coins might be enough for an ordinary family to buy some farmland in the countryside, but for a spellcaster, they might only cover one or two decent spellcasting gems.
These items probably accounted for most of Ye Wei'an's personal belongings. There might have been a few others, but they were either back at the family home in Firefall Fortress or managed by Ailian, and he didn't know what they were.
All those belongings together brought the load in his inventory to only [18.7/140], leaving plenty of room.
Meanwhile, once Ailian realized her master had a Bag of Holding, she was much less restrained while packing and pulled a pile of impractical outdoor gear from the baggage wagon.
A luxurious tent, thick carpets, a portable stove... Ye Wei'an even spotted a complete set of silverware and porcelain plates.
She told him Lina had asked the guards to bring them along for him. They'd spent every night at inns along the way, though, and hadn't needed to camp, so none of it had been used.
All that assorted gear brought the load straight up to [103/140].
Seeing there was still room, Ye Wei'an also took Grumman's greatsword from the spoils, the set of Studded Leather Armor with only its lower half intact, and three weapons taken from the bandits.
He had plans for all of it.
By the time they'd finished packing, Knight Cain had prepared the horses as well.
The party consisted of five people, including Ailian. With their armor and luggage, they'd need at least seven horses to reach Firefall Town within two days.
Fortunately, they'd seized a number of sturdy pack horses when they routed the bandits. They could put them to use now without burdening the main force or slowing it down.
Their accompanying men had also been assigned.
Two Lv. 1 Fighters stood nearby, holding the horses' reins. When they saw Ye Wei'an approach, they immediately straightened their backs, their eyes shining with excitement and eagerness.
"Young master," Cain introduced them, "this is Harold. He's a good shot with a bow and handles a sword well, too. This is Renn, a skilled battle-ax wielder with outstanding endurance. They're both fine lads."
"Young Master Ye Wei'an!" boomed the burly man named Harold. "Don't worry. With us around, those bastards lurking in the shadows won't lay a finger on you!"
"We'll protect you with our lives!" Renn echoed solemnly.
Cain lowered his voice. "Young master, everyone just fought a bloody battle. Now we're suddenly splitting up, and some of the men don't quite understand. They suspect... Anyway, perhaps you could say a few words before we set out?"
Ye Wei'an thought for a moment, then nodded.
He walked over to the men. All the guards—those staying behind as well as those about to leave—stopped what they were doing and turned their eyes to him.
"Before we set out on the road to revenge, there's something we must do." His voice wasn't loud, but it carried clearly to everyone's ears. "Let us observe three minutes of silence for the three brothers who fell today."
After speaking, he bowed his head first and placed his right hand over his chest.
Knight Cain stood solemnly with his head bowed. One after another, every guard, no matter how badly injured, stopped working, removed their helmet or hat, and lowered their head in silence.
For three whole minutes, the only sound in the woods was the rustling of wind through the leaves, as if the Earthmother, Chauntea, were sighing for her lost children.
When the silence ended, Ye Wei'an raised his head and looked over each man's face.
"After interrogating the bandit leader, I uncovered a truth that would shame the gods: this attack wasn't the bandits acting on a whim for money. Someone had paid them to kill us, plotting our deaths in cold blood!"
His words sent a shock through the guards.
The soldiers had thought they'd simply been unlucky. At the news, they first stared in disbelief, then anger reddened their eyes.
Ye Wei'an looked around and gave a slight nod. He had their support.
"We're splitting up not to abandon our comrades, but for the exact opposite reason: to find the bastard who hired these bandits to murder us and killed our brothers as quickly as possible!"
He stepped forward, his voice rising sharply. "Their blood will not have been shed in vain. I, Ye Wei'an Xiaxing, swear in the name of the Summerstar Family: I will drag the mastermind behind this plot out of the shadows and make them pay in full! I won't keep the spoils from this operation to myself. Every one of you will get your share. The families of the fallen will receive enough compensation to live in security. And to my wounded brothers left with disabilities—by Helm's eye, as long as I have food to eat, I will never let you end up on the streets!"
Ye Wei'an finished speaking.
After a brief silence, excited voices erupted among the guards:
"Long live Young Master Ye Wei'an!"
"Did you hear that? The young master will get us justice!"
"By Lathander's dawn, I've served under the baron for years and never heard such a sincere promise..."
"Compared to the young master in the castle with his nose in the air, this is a true Summerstar lord!"
The two chosen Fighters stood especially tall. Harold thumped his chest. "Young master, give the order!"
Renn nodded firmly, his gaze fierce.
The guards who hadn't been chosen looked deeply disappointed, as if they wished they could join the advance party themselves.
Seeing the scene before him, Ye Wei'an felt a slight pang of emotion.
Neither his past self nor the previous owner could have given a speech that inspired such a response.
The speech's effect wasn't entirely due to the authority he'd earned by turning the tide in the battle just now.
He could feel the bloodline energy flowing through him stirring faintly with his words. His Charisma score of 18 gave him an almost supernatural power to move people.
He believed that if he could see this through, then in the eyes of these common soldiers, he would no longer be "the unfamiliar bastard," but a Summerstar heir worthy of their trust.
At that moment, Ye Wei'an was sincerely glad he'd chosen to be a Charisma-based Sorcerer rather than an Intelligence-based Wizard.
Seeing that morale was high, Knight Cain stepped forward to carefully brief his deputy, who was staying behind, on guarding the wagons, wounded, and prisoners.
Once everything was in order, he turned to Ye Wei'an. "Young master, we're ready to go."
Ye Wei'an nodded and walked toward his mount, only to find Ailian looking uncertainly at the tall horse.
"Young master, I can't climb up," she said softly, a bashful blush rising to her cheeks.
"Come here." Ye Wei'an reached out and put an arm around Ailian's soft waist. With a little lift, he settled her at the front of the saddle, then swung up behind her with ease. The girl's soft body naturally leaned into his arms.
By the standards of his past life, this position was far too intimate. Only lovers would do something like this.
But Ailian didn't seem to mind at all. She even adjusted her position, edging closer to Ye Wei'an until her head rested against his chin.
"I'm settled, young master."
Damn the old society...
Ye Wei'an suppressed his secret delight and took hold of the reins.
"Let's go, knight."
"Move out!" Cain rode at the head of the party, leading them onto the road to Firefall Town.
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