Chapter 124

I groaned; eyes shuttered open. I felt a kink in my neck and a hard surface below my head, the light straining my eyes as I focused on my surroundings. I picked myself up from being sprawled across a wooden table, glass bottles falling onto the floor as I set myself upright.

I almost slipped, steadying myself as I grabbed onto the table. I cast a curious glance around the room, I was not the only one who had apparently passed out in a compromising position.

"Fucking hell." I muttered, running my hand down my face, letting my eyes focus better.

How much did I drink last night?"

[Yes.]

"Thanks, Ddraig." I sighed.

[No problem.]

Well, at least I had the sense to put my clothes back on before I got passed out drunk. Which was something I don't usually do, even that one time with Izzy, I still made it back home before collapsing on my couch.

I ran a hand through my hair, noticing something very peculiar. It was not up in a pony tail, while not something I would be overly picky about, I couldn't find the binding I used.

I started looking all around, under the table and between the chairs…..nothing.

The piece of cloth was practically worthless, except, it was the one that Scáthach used to bind my hair the first time. I felt a small pit in my stomach at the thought of losing it.

To say I slightly panicked would be an understatement, I didn't care how frantic I looked as I started practically crawling on the ground looking for it. Every nook and cranny I checked and found empty just increased my growing anxiety. I paused, doing the obvious thing and checking inside my storage space both my ring and my hat, but it was not there either.

I leaned against the table, staring off into the ceiling, a pit in my stomach. I couldn't help but clench my fists in frustration, the only thing stopping me from shouting was that I was in public with other people sleeping off their drinks.

Fuck.

Rather forcibly, I pushed all these raging emotions down.

I need a distraction.

Look around, it was quietly and it was only a few moments later that I felt something grab my attention in my ring, I took out my new phone. It had apparently been buzzing me since yesterday. The way it alerted my through my storage device was interesting, and I had to give credit to Rin, she really did a good job.

'Saber and me are going exploring, be back later.' – Rin.

Huh.

Good for them.

Even though I collapsed back into a chair and let out a sigh, I was happy for them. I didn't want to drive a wedge between the relationship they developed over the years they've been together. I briefly wondered if I was 'taking' Saber away from Rin when I first sought out a relationship, but I honestly never saw anything resembling romantic inclinations between them. Honestly, they seemed to be almost like sisters, and I didn't wish for Rin to feel like a third wheel when me and Saber are around.

So, I was happy for them. Let them go out, have fun, explore and get into dangerous situations. I know for a fact that Artoria wouldn't let Rin go running around unless they made ample preparations. Not to mention, the Archmage was probably keeping an eye on her, so everything should be on the up and up, and I would not be babysitting her.

Sitting up again, I stretched my arms, leaning side to side to give my back a good crack as well.

Would it be overstepping if I tried to set Rin up with someone?

I mean, not like in the creepy way. But maybe see if any of my friends would check any of her boxes? Granted, my male friends list is lacking compared to my females, but then again, I think Rin swings both ways.

Perhaps I should ask Artoria first, get a feel for that situation. It's not like she 'needs' a romantic partner, and I certainly don't want to force anything like that on her.

Bleh.

Let's see how she is in a few months of finally getting a sense of 'freedom' and adventure.

Well, I have some time to focus on some tasks I wanted to accomplish while here again. As much as I wanted to see Meridia and give Rin an avenue for further strengthening, I did have some things I wished to get done.

Speaking of my beautiful goddess, I should go see her before I set off anywhere important. But, before then, I guess I should see Thorum and make sure he's good before I head off.

I turned around, eyeing Sir Wiggles in the corner, he was curled up into a little floof ball, but his eyes were open, as if he had woken up recently.

"Hat or with me?" I asked, giving a feeling through the bond of what I was offering, either going back in the hat, or accompany me.

He hopped over, and quickly scaling my arm, onto my shoulder.

I just chuckled, lightly patting his head before grabbing anything else of importance and heading out the back door.

There was a large courtyard, well moreso just an open area, behind the companions building. Benches all around, an area that had seen a lot of feet trampling any kind of foliage into just a hard dirt ground. What caught my attention were the sounds coming from the forge where I had Mirage created. Well, I wouldn't mind paying a visit to the smith again, he did good work.

Sir Wiggles sent a sort of displeasure through the link about this place. I don't know what it was, but apparently the 'fire' here was distressing him. I gave him a mental affirmation that he could go run around.

He had been cooped up for a bit, I wouldn't mind him having fund around Whiterun.

"I'm telling you, this doesn't make a lick of sense!"

"Sorry, Greymane, I don't know." Thorums apologetic voice responded to the Smith's irate words.

Eyes fell on me immediately as I climbed the stone path up to the sky forge. Aela, Thorum, and Eorlund were all sitting around, Eorlund holding Gram in his hand and a few broken swords on the ground beneath them.

"Hey." I greeted with a lazy wave.

"Will." Thorum happily returned. "I had not thought you would be up this early."

Aela let out a snort of amusement. It felt like some distance was closed between us. I still wouldn't call us friends, but she was much more friendly. "Maybe you should stick to something lighter next time, milk boy."

"Yeah, yeah." I rolled my eyes. "I'm not used to drinking that much."

"Lad, are you the one who gave Thorum this – thing?" Eorlund waved around Gram.

"Yes….?" I answered in confusion. "What's wrong with it?"

"What's wrong with it!? What's wrong with it is that I can't find a single indication of any forging techniques! It split my steel like it was wood!" He looked exasperated.

"Ah, I see. It wasn't purely made by mundane means, I'm not exactly privy to the details, but powerful magics were construed in the creation process." Didn't feel like giving a lecture on Alchemy from my birth world.

Eorlund just scowled, pushing the sword back into Thorum's hands. "Atleast my work is still better." He grumbled. "How is my blade doing, lad? Have you slain any memorable foes with it yet?"

I brought Mirage out, floating next to me. I got a few eye raised as it slowly moved towards Eorlund.

"Beautiful." He praised. "The edge is still pristine, the grip is well maintained. If I didn't know any better I'd say it's never seen a proper battle."

"I have some other swords, if you want to take a look." As much as I felt I needed to hide secrets, I really had this strange desire to show off my collection.

"If they're anything like this 'Gram', I wouldn't mind taking a gander." He carefully set Mirage down on a nearby table. "Alright, Lad, show me your weapons."

I smiled, waiving my hand and my other swords flew out. I started pointing to each one. "Whisper, Ascalon, Sword of Destruction, Dawnbreaker."

Eorlund looked intrigued, he didn't immediately grab them, but walked up close and began to analyze them with a keen eye. "I would ask what you would want with so many swords, but I heard about how you fought that dragon earlier." He said idly.

"Aye, my friend. It was a strange way to fight, but it was impressive." Thorum slapped my shoulder. "This one here, it gives me a similar feeling to Gram." He pointed out Ascalon.

"Another Dragon Slayer sword." I said simply, earning a nod from him.

"I've never heard of a 'Dragon slaying sword' the way Thorum described it, are these types of weapons rare?" Aela asked, also inspecting my swords.

I had to admit, I preened under their inquisitive gazes. The thought of them envying my collection brought some strange feelings inside me.

"They are. The factors at play to produce one…..it's not really something you can artificially create unless you have some very rare resources and it might be a waste to use them for such a reason." I explained, earning their attention. "I ran into a brat who was the descendant of Sigurd – the original owner I mentioned."

"Aye, I recall. A normal man who slayed a dragon by skill and wit. I hope to hear the full story another time." Thorum seemed intrigued by the idea, I couldn't fault him with how his existence seemed to revolve around dragons.

"Well, Sigurd didn't only have Gram, merely Gram being the strongest. The others were…..not particularly interesting in my opinion. So, when him and a group of his companions conspired to kidnap my Daughter to use as leverage against her mother, I took the weapons after we defeated them."

"You're little Fox~" Aela lightly mocked.

"Pardon?" I blinked in surprise.

"Oh, my friend, did you not know?" Thorum looked at me, and I just stared at him blankly. "When you were many drinks in…..you would not stop speaking about your daughter, calling her your little fox." He laughed.

"Oh great." I sighed. Never going to live this down.

"Fear not, my friend. You are but a good father, even if you will never stop hearing jests." Thorum and Aela shared a laugh at my expense.

Well, I did tell Thorum a sort of abridged story about Kunou before I drank too much.

"Anyways!" I changed the subject. "I took Gram, left the rest with Kunou's mother since the damage was a bit extensive, they were decently strong, so they would be good recompose."

"This is a Daedric Artifact." Eorlund interrupted, poking at Dawnbreaker.

"Yes, I got it after clearing out Meridia's Shrine out north." I had nothing to hide, and I think Meridia was pleased as it slowed just a little brighter.

"Hmm, is that wise to carry such a thing around?" He eyed me.

"I wouldn't trade it for anything in the world."

He grunted, turning to the next sword. "Not any of my business." He looked at Ascalon, scowled again and I can only assume he was comparing it to Gram in how it was made. I decided not to voice any thoughts on that, never knew who was peeking right now and the idea of a Noble Phantasm was way too foreign to properly bullshit my way through. "What is this." He finally landed on Whisper.

"Whisper, it's similar to Mirage in that it helps cast my magic."

"Hmm, these symbols….." He ran a finger over the blade.

Usually, I would be much more tense about someone touching my swords…maybe it was the fact that he was a true smith? A respect for his profession and that he would treat my prized possessions with respect.

He looked up at me, then back down at the sword. "Did this used to be a spear!?"

"You can tell?" I laughed awkwardly.

"Can I tell!? Lad, who do you think I am?" He grumbled. "I would normally call something like this a piece of scrap….but the craftsmanship is astounding." He looked at the sword in awe. "I can only imagine how beautiful the spear must have been, but to turn it into a sword, and be properly weighted, to have all the dimensions aligned like this…."

"She was good at what she did." I thought briefly of the spear in my ring, but I was extremely possessive of that particular weapon and didn't want anyone to touch it but me.

"She?" Eorlund whispered. "Lad, what's the name of this weapon's creator?"

"Scáthach." I answered simply.

"Scáthach." He let the name sink in. "I will remember it."

I don't think my Sword of Destruction interested him much. It looked very ceremonial, and I could guess that he was thinking it a magical sword like the others and didn't care about its creation.

"These have given me some idea." He immediately went back to his forge. "Get out, I have some work to do."

Thorum and Aela didn't look disturbed at his sudden forcefulness, merely bidding him farewell and I called back my sword as I followed them along down the stairs, back into the Companion's compound.

"You know, I'm curious. What exactly have you been up to when not fighting Dragons, Thorum?" He told me about his previous fights, but nothing much beyond that. Granted, we hadn't spoke for too long.

"Well." He scratched his head. "The Jarl asked me not to venture too far away while the dragons are around."

Ah, that makes sense. He wanted Thorum in dragon slaying distance.

"Must get boring, being cooped up here for so long."

"Aye, the Skyrim horizons call me something fierce, but I am needed here, for now." Thorum admitted, somewhat sad, but also a certain amount of resolve in his voice.

"Well, if everything goes well, it won't be too long. We just have to find Alduin and stop him." I offered a smile.

"I am not quite sure it is that simple, but I look forward to the day."

"What about you, Wilhelm." Aela spoke up, merely listening in at this point. "Are you going to stick around?"

"Did you miss me?" I smirked.

"As if." She rolled her eyes. "I prefer more 'man' in my lays." Aela laughed.

"Oi, do I have to take my shirt off again? I'm plenty of man over here."

"Keep telling that to yourself, milk boy." She said humorously.

"Well, my self esteem has thoroughly been shattered. But to answer your question, I'm mainly working through the College, with some personal errands I want to run. I'll keep an eye out when I'm away, if I hear anything about dragons, I'll hurry on back." I decided to be honest with my intentions. "That reminds me…"

"What?" Throum asked.

"The Jarl owes me some land, and I have a use for it now." I rubbed my chin. "You think he'd mind if I set a house up near the city?"

***

I walked up the steps towards the Jarl's hall again, this time by myself. Thorum and Aela had some Companion business they needed to take care of and politely told me it was private, so I headed over here.

The guard just nodded towards me as I approached the large wood doors, their might and stature clearly indicating a fortification mindset when created, yet I was easily ushered inside.

The place wasn't crowded as before, there were a few people at the tables set up, eating, lightly chatting, but 'court' wasn't being held.

The Jarl, his eyes turned to me as I entered, standing next to his attendant that I recalled from the other day.

"Wilhelm, a pleasant surprise." The Jarl greeted me, and It felt distinctly more casual.

"Jarl." I once again gave a very slight bow. They weren't big on 'etiquette' here, but a token of respect was mostly appreciated.

He gave a pleased nod. "What can I do for you, Wilhelm?"

"Well, I wanted to ask about that piece of land…."

He blinked for a moment, realization dawning on him. "Oh, I had forgotten." He clapped his hands. "I had the parchment drawn up weeks ago. It is my study if you wouldn't mind accompanying me."

I furrowed my brow. "By all means, please lead the way." I put on a strained smile as he happily started leading me behind closed door, waiving off his attendants.

It wasn't particularly, far, and not exactly what one would call a 'study'. There were several bookcases, a large desk, and another table with a map of Skyrim along with flags showing many different things. There were little dragons on some, the Stormcloaks insignia on others, and what I assume was the Imperial legion on others.

"Sit." He gestured to a chair infront of his desk as he took the seat behind. I obliged, as we shared a look. He appeared as if trying to read me. "I am at odds on what to do with you, Wilhelm." He spoke up.

"What do you mean by that?" I feigned ignorance.

"That." He pointed out, letting out a small sigh. "Realistically, I should do everything I can to put you under my authority, but the actions I've made have been sidestepped by you at every turn."

I was surprised by his candid attitude. "I didn't expect you to be so blunt about it. I guess we're dispensing with the song and dance here?"

He let out a snort of laughter. " I do not enjoy playing the political games when there is no need. You have shone your intentions not to be roped into my plans as it is."

"That's true, I like to stay out of politics." I agreed.

"You are powerful, enough that it frightens many people under my command."

"And I'm not a Nord." I pointed out.

"This is true as well." He didn't hide it. "I have no issue with other races, but there is a pride in our own heritage that blinds our perceptions."

I sighed, rubbing my forehead. "It's to be expected. I've been treated very well by you Nords since coming to Skyrim, but your people are very proud of your culture, it makes sense that they view what they're familiar with in a better light than a foreigner like me." I remarked. "And I suppose my strange nature doesn't help as well."

"Yes, your wings are a strange thing indeed. Many think you some kind of Daedra worshipper or a citizen of Oblivion."

"If I said neither, would you believe me?"

"I would." He said without hesitation. "I like to think myself a good judge of character." He continued. "I do not believe you to be like Thorum, not a deceitful bone in his body, but you don't seem the type to lie to my face. Half-truths, skewing my perspective, I would not put it against you though."

"That's a fair assessment." I had nothing against what he's noted so far. "So, where does that leave us?"

He leaned back, another sigh escaping his lips. "You being with the College is both annoying and helpful in this situation."

"Ah, I see. You're using the fact that I'm with the college to keep any hot heads quiet? With how helpful they've been, no one wants to cause any trouble on that front."

The Jarl smiled lightly. "It is as you say. But, there are still many open voices calling for some more extreme action."

"Farengar?" I hazard a guess.

"He is among them." The Jarl confirmed, and I guess there was no need to keep that tidbit a secret. "You possess powerful artifacts, many a thing they would do well in my 'hands'."

"And what do you think?"

"I think, many of my people are short sighted and frightened by the attacks. You are not a citizen of Whiterun, nor of Skyrim as a whole. You respect my Authority, but you are not beholden to me outside these walls and if you wished to leave, would I even be able to stop you? Assuming I could, If I truly did wish to confiscate from you, then what kind of picture would that paint of me? Where would it end after that? If a merchant comes along with a bit more gold than normal, do I simply take that was well?" He shook his head. "I would rather continue our current relationship, but I wish for it to be more…..ironclad."

"An agreement then?" I thought out loud. "You want a guarantee from me."

"In simple terms, yes." He didn't hide it.

I rubbed my chin, mulling it over. "You are being very open with me, so I'll return the good will. I do feel guilty somewhat. I heard some of the Dragons that came around have been calling me out as well?" I looked up at him.

"That is true, I think the name – Red Dragon Emperor – is more known than your true name." He mused. "Most folks believe it to be in reference to your eye catching hair color." He added.

I ran a hand through my hair at the mention of it. The lack of a ponytail was surprisingly grating on me. "I already decided to help. Not to mention Thorum is my friend, I would always stand by his side. And my heart isn't made of stone, if Whiterun was in danger, I would lend my aid." I left out that I did think of this place as almost a second home, Skyrim that is.

He seemed genuinely pleased by my confession. "A weight is lifted off my chest at your words. I am glad I did not think incorrectly of you, Wilhelm." The Jarl rummaged through his draws, fetching a rolled piece of parchment. "This has my mark, I found a particular piece of land that matched what you asked for previously. It is a little bit outside the wall, I do not know if it has been damaged by the dragon attacks or not."

"It doesn't matter, I can manage that on my own." I waved off his concerns.

"Out of curiosity, what is your intention for this plot of land? It is not particularly large, the area is also not suitable for farming."

"I wanted to build a house." I admitted. Though, technically, I was going to slap my current house right on the land there.

"A house? We do have properties inside the walls for sale, I could find one as a proper reward."

"I wanted to use my own and be far enough away from other people so my magic stuff wouldn't bother them."

He paused, considering my words. "I see. I have no quarrel with the magic arts, but many Nords find it a bad omen since the issues with the College many years ago. The Archmage has done much to revert those thoughts in the mean time, but how long this good will lasts, I can not claim to know."

"It's fine, I don't' plan on advertising what I'm doing. I'll set up the proper defenses so nothing could get out of hand by accident."

The Jarl accepted my words, standing up. "Wilhelm, I am thankful for your honest words. I feel more at ease with you around, and I hope you will not take to heart any harmful things spoken about you in my city. You are welcomed here with my blessing."

He held a hand out for a shake, I took it gladly.

"I'm glad to help." I smiled as he gave me leave to head out.

It was time to go visit my beautiful genie and get started on my home.

***

Going to make a short trip to DxD to bring the house on over, and visit his little fox while he's at it. I know some people don't really care for Skyrim, so i was picking up the pace a little bit, making the chapters longer to get through it a little faster.

Edit: Just wanted to address this because it's been said several times now. Thorum isn't stronger than Wilhelm. They had an arm wrestling contest without any kind of magic or enhancements not passive. Yes, Thorum who is a dragon in human form, who munched on atleast half a dozen dragon souls, is -physically- stronger than MC when he doesn't use anything to boost himself up further.

Anyways, if you want to read 6 chapters ahead or support me, visit my pat.reon.com/astoryforone.