From Hogwarts to Strixhaven.

Chapter 529 Yingxin's Invitation

Mizzola sent an invitation to the Duke's coronation ceremony, which was indeed something that had been expected.

Because Zariel's agent at Baldur's Gate, Salamara Van Sampur, had previously funded the Order of the Death Trinity, Ivy believed there must be some kind of connection between Zariel and Gortash.

Zariel had initially thought the half-dead Death Tribe of Baldur's Gate would become a weapon in his hands, but he hadn't anticipated that, under the leadership of the two divine beings, Evil Thought and Gotash, the Death Tribe had already transformed from a pawn into a player. And all of this happened while Zariel was deeply embroiled in El Toril, the focus of attention for all factions.

By the time she understood the truth about the larger conspiracy in the Sword Coast, it was almost too late. She had to face the bloody battle head-on while also guarding against other high demons in Avernus who coveted the position of High Demon Duke. Zariel had few men at her disposal.

Tiamat, the evil dragon queen, is imprisoned in Avernus and constantly yearns to escape; the former Grand Duke of Avernus, Byr, serves as a weapons quartermaster in the Blood War Legion, an insult that also gives him the opportunity to build his power within the legion; Mephisto's son, who established the House of Hope in Avernus, even played a significant role in the plot of the Supreme God. This father and son, one giving away the Crown of Karthus, which was located deep within his own treasury, and the other forging a hammer capable of shattering the Astral Prism a thousand years ago, make it hard not to suspect that some conspiracy has been brewing for some time.

However, as long as Zariel remains the Demon Grand Duke of Afonas, the great demons in the first layer of the Nine Hells must lie low under her power. Asmodeus, the King of the Nine Hells, will not allow anyone to interfere with the Blood War in Hell. Therefore, on the surface, the great demons who are qualified to challenge the position of Grand Duke of Afonas must maintain harmony and work together for the Blood War.

The conspiracies within Afonas are insignificant to Zariel, but conspiracies that could directly alter the situation in Hell can also be brewing outside of Hell, just as the evil dragon queen Tiamat repeatedly plotted to escape Afonas, and as Asmodeus's ascension ritual to godhood, replacing the bloodline of all Ferentiflin.

In order to obtain information about the Prime Material Plane, it was impossible for Zariel, as the Demon Grand Duke, to personally take action. However, her servants at Baldur's Gate had been almost entirely killed or wounded. With Eltoril's return to the Prime Material Plane, few cultists could escape a new round of judgment. Even those Tifflins who merely resembled demons in appearance were expelled from Eltugard.

Thus, the two minor characters who escaped on the snail-shell ship naturally became her new pawns in achieving her goals.

Will and Karak, these two pawns with intricate connections to Zariel, do indeed have a group of highly skilled teammates. They have thwarted the Supreme God's plots multiple times and obtained the key tools to control the Supreme God.

At this point, Zariel thought it was a good idea to take in Duke Ravengard, who was seen as a negative asset by his opponents, in order to recruit Will Ravengard in advance, who had the potential to become a hero and accumulate political prestige by thwarting the Supreme God's conspiracy.

By resetting Baldur's Gate, they might be able to replicate the operation that sent El Toril to hell.

Several days ago, Ivy had already analyzed for Will the possible whereabouts of Duke Ravengard after the coronation ceremony. Unexpectedly, Zariel was so impatient that he even sent his most loyal servant, Cambion, to deliver an invitation to the Gotash coronation ceremony.

After refusing Mizora's request to stay in the palace, Ivy and her companions discussed who would participate in the coronation ceremony.

"Only four people can participate? And there's a dress code?" Karak held the thin invitation in her hand, turning it over and over. "We have a whole family here!"

“The coronation ceremony is definitely the most heavily guarded place in Gotash.” Asdalon didn’t gather around Ivy’s desk, but instead stood far away, showing early on that he didn’t intend to get involved. “He must see that ceremony as the beginning of his tyranny.”

“We can also turn it into the demise of tyranny!” Karak threw down the coronation invitation, placed her hands on the wooden table, and leaned as close to Ivy as possible to enhance her persuasiveness. “We should launch our attack at the coronation! Expose his conspiracy in front of all Baldur’s Gate, rip off his head, and shove it up his ass! Oh, and of course, that magical little stone.”

“This is insane…” Asdalon couldn’t help but complain. “I don’t mind helping you out when you’re getting revenge, but facing a dozen Flame Fists and so many metal golems that can be used as bottle openers isn’t revenge, it’s suicide.”

“It will be a gathering of nobles, with countless conspiracies brewing under the tablecloth…” Will tried his best to keep his expression calm as he carefully analyzed the upcoming coronation ceremony. “Gotash cannot control all the nobles in the city. Perhaps we can find some allies among them.”

“You know what we’ll see at the coronation in Gotash, right?” Ivy confirmed. “Your father has become a puppet of Gotash, and watching the upright High Duke of Baldur’s Gate crown a schemer will be a real test for you. Not to mention that the devil will offer a deal afterward, with your own soul on one side of the scale and your father’s safety on the other.”

Ivy nodded in comfort: "This is a very difficult decision, but fortunately we are prepared. I suggest you don't refuse or agree to any of the devil's deals. The time you gain might change things."

"I still have hope... to save my father?" Will stared in disbelief.

“I thought you were the one who had dealt with the devil for much longer.” Ivy frowned. “If the target isn’t willing, then the devil can’t obtain their soul. Using magic to make the target obey is possible, but that doesn’t count as a victory for the devil. As a mortal implanted with mind flayer tadpoles, neither Mizora nor Zariel could get Ravengard to willingly make a deal with them, so they couldn’t be taken to Hell. Even if he disappears after the coronation ceremony, your father will still be in Baldur’s Gate.”

Just as the conversation was going on, another group of adventurers returned to the palace: Shadowheart and Minsk, along with Jahira's five children.

Their racial range is very wide, ranging from green-skinned orcs to half-elves, but most of them are human children.

“So, Fig, you really saw her? And not a worker dragging a tangled gray mop?” asked Lyon, a half-elf girl who had entered the palace. She was Jahira’s eldest child and was responsible for looking after the younger children.

“Be serious, Leon!” The human girl Fig, with two braids coiled on her head, looked serious. “Who braids a mop? We need to discuss how to interrogate…?”

Fige stopped talking and turned to look at another little girl next to him with a hairstyle resembling a younger version of Jasera's: "What's that word again? Jessam?"

“It’s Ms. Jessam,” the precocious woman with dreadlocks corrected. “Trial.”

She surveyed the lavishly decorated palace hall with satisfaction: "This place is wonderful, perfect for hosting our Lord's Court! And the first person to be tried is that barbaric villain who drove us from our homeland!"

Hearing the commotion outside, the adventurers emerged from Ivy's study and looked down at the farce unfolding in the hall.

"The Lord's Court? Is it the kind I'm thinking of?" Will was referring to the typical political institution of the manor feudal system, which was also the primary way for lords to exercise their power, a place in the central government of their own territories to handle disputes. However, if the territory they ruled was not urbanized enough, the Lord's Court would become a marketplace for handling disputes between farmers and hunters, and the words that came out of their mouths would mostly be about livestock, agricultural products, and specialty trade goods.

If a territory is sufficiently urbanized, the lord's courts may become even worse, unable to implement any policies or measures other than sitting idly by and listening to a group of well-dressed people arguing.

Hold large meetings for minor matters, small meetings for major matters, and no meetings for matters of life or death.

This principle remains unchanged regardless of changes in political systems.

"So, another lord has come to our palace?" Asdell didn't mind playing house with the children. "I really didn't know Jahira was a nobleman."

"A noble of the Tesser! A royal noble!" Jessem said with great pride. "Jahira is a druid, and Leon is too fond of swearing—so I'm the only one who can become queen."

“Tesel?” Asdalon, a former Inquisitor of Baldur's Gate, raised an eyebrow. “I remember that nation was destroyed because it rebelled against a tyrant…”

"Pah!" Jesem, who barely reached Asdalon's waist, spat. "I'm not a tyrant. If anyone dares to call me that, I'll have Figg chop off their heads!"

Despite her young age, Ms. Jessam already possesses the potential to be a tyrant. In her lord game, Fig, who is even younger than her, seems to hold a position similar to that of a lord's guard captain.

"Let's leave the pleasantries here." The eldest daughter, Leon, clad in leather armor and carrying a warhammer on her back, interrupted her sister's lord game. "Where is our mother, who is still missing? I was hoping to have a mother-daughter conversation here!"

“The high-ranking harpist is clearly terrified of meeting his daughter.” Ivy’s words softened the displeasure on Leon’s face. “She went to the guild and is with Nine Fingers, but she’ll be back soon. Hmm… don’t tell her I told her.”

“Asdallen, take them to the rooms that have been arranged in advance and get their things settled first.” Ivy winked at Leon, who seemed hesitant to speak. “It’s right next to Jahira’s room. I don’t know if druids have the habit of locking their doors when they go out.”

“Thank you…” Leon hesitated for a moment before thanking Ivy, “Thank you for saving my mother… She’s too old to say such nonsense about dying like a hero.”

Ivy wasn't sure how much Minsk and Shadowheart had told Jahira's children, but they were clearly prepared in every sense of the word.

“Minsk has already sensed the battle, Little B…” Watching Leon’s departing figure, Minsk tried to lower his voice and said, “No, there are some battles that even Minsk doesn’t have the courage to participate in… She wields her hammer very well, while Minsk’s head is like an anvil…”

Shadowheart, who had been observing from the sidelines, approached Ivy and took his hand: "While wandering around Baldur's Gate today, I noticed something unusual... some graffiti that looked like my own handwriting..."

Ivy knew very well that Shadowheart didn't like discussing her secrets in public, so he stopped her from continuing and led her into the inner room: "You need to rest. Vampires are creatures who indulge in pleasure. Kazador left many things in this palace that we can use."

"A bathroom?" Yingxin looked at the huge pool in front of her and asked in surprise, "I've heard that some vampires bathe in blood, could it be..."

The bathroom was very large, with walls and ceilings covered in pure white marble. A mermaid statue, as smooth and lustrous as white jade, held a water bottle and poured out a curtain of steaming water.

A faucet shaped like an animal's mouth peeked out from the edge of the pool, continuously spewing a series of bubbles into the water.

“This place has been completely transformed by my magic. Vampires’ aesthetic sense is truly questionable. So you can use it with complete peace of mind. You can even swim in it without any problem.” Ivy waved her hand, spraying out a series of bellflower-blue mists, adding a touch of whimsy to the gradually bubbling surface of the water.

"I believe they will wash away your troubles. Enjoy it all." Ivy gave a gentlemanly bow and prepared to turn and leave.

“I can’t…” Yingxin grabbed his hand again. “I mean, I can’t swim. So it’s necessary to hire a professor to prevent drowning.”

This was, of course, an invitation to bathe together, but the necessary tugging was still inevitable: "As a professor, my requirements are very strict. I do not allow anyone to quit halfway or have their mind wander."

Yingxin had just started giggling when the mark belonging to Shar on the back of her hand began to remind her of her presence.

"Ah..." After a suppressed gasp, Yingxin's legs went weak, and she leaned against Ivy. "I thought I had gotten used to this kind of pain..."

Seeing the worry in Ivy's eyes, she smiled again: "Don't let Shar spoil our fun... Hurry up and take off your clothes, or do you need my help?"

Ivy never had the habit of deserting in the face of battle. She simply ran her finger lightly across Shadowheart's collar, and the half-elf's armor automatically disintegrated into a pile of parts.

Amid a series of laughter and exclamations, Ivy carried Yingxin into the bathtub that was already covered with a layer of bubbles.

(End of this chapter)