>>1346006
>>Go see Eleri's parents.

>>1346006
>>Go see Olwen's father.
that brother will probably take better to the Duke's recommended parties

>>1346006
>>Go see Eleri's parents.

>>1346006
>Go see Eleri's parents.

File: Olwen17.jpg (51 KB, 1280x720)

51 KB JPG

>>1346006
While Duke Heath might be a good influence on your brother, you might make more progress if you look for well-bred commoners. It'll give your brother the impression he's a man of the people while also letting him meet people who have some knowledge of how a kingdom is run. After all, people whose reputation and status is based on their wealth won't want to see that wealth disappear because of the Crown's mismanagement.

"Eleri, I think I'll go see your parents," you say. "I should meet your mother, at least. She's Rosean, isn't she?"

"More or less," Eleri says. "She was born there, but she spent most of her life wandering the continent. I think she spent more time in Svekka than anywhere else."

"You two have fun." Olwen gets out of bad and starts rummaging for her clothes. "I'm sure Myrddin will need me for something or other. If not, I'll just keep Reagan company. Maybe father will want to meet my… step-children, I suppose?"

"That's as good a term as any," you say.

You get dressed and leave the palace with Eleri on your arm.

"Should I bring a gift?" You ask. "I'd hate to make a poor impression on your mother."

"That might not be a bad idea," Eleri says. "Just don't go overboard; I don't want to show up with something gaudy."

>[Merchant/Autosuccess] Chocolates. Everyone loves chocolate.
>[Military/Autosuccess] Get an ornamental weapon. They make good status symbols.
>[Dilettante/Autosuccess] Maybe a small painting or statue?

>>1346131
>>[Merchant/Autosuccess] Chocolates. Everyone loves chocolate.

>>1346131
>[Military/Autosuccess] Get an ornamental weapon. They make good status symbols.
A symbol that they are in some small part protected by the prince.

>>1346131
>>[Dilettante/Autosuccess] Maybe a small painting or statue?

>>1346141
Supporting

>>1346131
>[Dilettante/Autosuccess] Maybe a small painting or statue?

>>1346149
>>1346131

>[Military/Autosuccess] Get an ornamental weapon. They make good status symbols.

Protection is always good,

Rolled 2 (1d3)

Do we have a tie? 'Cause it looks like we have a tie.

>>1346141
>>1346170
1

>>1346152
>>1346176
2

>>1346149
>>1346187
3

>>1346131

>[Merchant/Autosuccess] Chocolates. Everyone loves chocolate.

>>1346131
>>1346149
>>1346187
2nded,

File: Eleri22.jpg (81 KB, 850x960)

81 KB JPG

>>1346131
Eleri's parents are famous artists, so perhaps something related to that would be appropriate? You can't buy dancing shoes or musical instruments off a shelf - not a good one, at least - but there are other options.

You bring Eleri over to the artisanal workshops and browse for a suitable painting or sculpture. After looking through a few different stores, you find a rose carved out of a pink stone. The stone's a Parlan import, but the sculpture is only big enough to fit in the palm of your hand, so it's not too expensive.

"This will do," Eleri says. "It looks nice, but it's not showy."

"We'll take it."

You purchase the sculpture along with an ornately-carved wooden gift box and a velvet cushion for the presentation. You're certain it'll look lively.

Evan Lloyd has moved to a different house while you were absent. You remember his previous home wasn't shabby by any means, but he's living in a large manor now; your support - both direct and indirect - has made him a wealthy man. It isn't squandered money either; there's more space to practice and to hold meetings with patrons and artists.

The staff, however, hasn't changed. They greet you very respectfully as soon as you arrive and bring you to the salon so you can wait for the master and his wife.

There's a large couch and some chairs. Eleri waits for you to decide where to sit.

>[Dilettante/Autosuccess] Be casual. Sit on the couch.
>[Dilettante/Autosucess] Be formal. Sit in a chair.
>[Dilettante/Autosuccess] Be affectionate. Sit in a chair and let Eleri sit on your lap.

>>1346275
>[Dilettante/Autosucess] Be formal. Sit in a chair.

>>1346275
>[Dilettante/Autosuccess] Be casual. Sit on the couch.

>>1346275
>>[Dilettante/Autosucess] Be formal. Sit in a chair.
Having Eleri in our lap would shout "I'm nailing your precious little baby all day every day", that's a bit rude

Beleaguered, the pastebin is very out of date

>>1346275
>>[Dilettante/Autosucess] Be formal. Sit in a chair.

>>1346289
>Beleaguered, the pastebin is very out of date

Yeah, I've been lazy for the last... however it's been since I updated it. I don't feel like doing it before a thread because it'll be obsolete anyway, but I keep forgetting to do it after the thread is over. I guess I can go do that now.

>>1346275
>[Dilettante/Autosuccess] Be casual. Sit on the couch.

>>1346275
>>[Dilettante/Autosuccess] Be affectionate. Sit in a chair and let Eleri sit on your lap.

File: Stasya1.png (325 KB, 550x950)

325 KB PNG

>>1346275
You decide to take adjacent chairs. It'd be a tiny bit rude to show off your rampant debauchery in front of Eleri's parents.

The door opens and Evan Lloyd enters alongside a short, brown-haired woman who must be Eleri's mother, Stasya.

"Eleri, it's been so long!" The woman hugs Eleri and practically lifts her off her chair. "I was so excited when you told us you were coming to the capital."

"Hello, mother," Eleri wheezes out despite the crushing hug. "His highness and I brought you a gift."

You open the gift box and present it. "It's a pleasure to meet you at last," you say. "I thought this would be appropriate, since I wasn't able to greet your properly earlier."

"Oh, that is absolutely lovely, your highness!" Stasya carefully takes the box and examines the content. "Grandchildren would have been better though."

"I told you I wasn't ready, mother," Eleri grumbles. "We haven't had time recently either. Just wait another year or two."

"Really, dear, what's the point of becoming a prince's concubine if you're not going to have his illegitimate children? Why, when you were a little girl, you kept saying you were going to marry the prince, you know."

Eleri's face flushes bright red. "Mother, that was just a childish fantasy!"

"And now you're an adult and adults have children!"

"Thank you for your gift, your highness." Evan Lloyd bows deeply. "Please don't mind my wife."

"It's fine," you say. "My mother's the same. I'm sure they'd get along nicely."

Although it might be better if they never meet.

"So, how can we help you, your highness?" Evan asks.

"I'd like to attend some celebrations, perhaps even bring the Crown Prince along," you say. "It would be nice for him to meet some responsible and supportive individuals who are outside the nobility. I was hoping you might have some recommendations."

"We can certainly assist you," Stasya says. "Is this primarily for business or pleasure?"

>"Business."
>"Pleasure."
>"Honestly, I'm not sure if there's a difference for me anymore."

>>1346392
>>"Business."

>>1346392
Oh, a missing closing tag. It's been a while since I've seen one of those.

>>1346392
>>"Honestly, I'm not sure if there's a difference for me anymore."

>>1346392
>>"Pleasure."

>>1346392
>>"Honestly, I'm not sure if there's a difference for me anymore."

>>1346392
>>"Pleasure."

Rolled 2 (1d2)

>>1346402
>>1346421
1

>>1346405
>>1346427
2

File: Evan2.jpg (36 KB, 1280x720)

36 KB JPG

>>1346392
"Pleasure," you say. "I'd like it if my brother could enjoy himself a little and I wouldn't mind relaxing as well. My brother's wife might or might not join us though, so I'd like to avoid anything… excessive."

"In that case, you'll want parties with lots of dancing and little alcohol, your highness," Stasya says.

That makes sense; as a rule, drunks can't dance very well and no one wants the ballroom floor to end up like a bloody battlefield. There's less room for chatting though, so it's difficult to conduct any sort of business. It's great for casual socializing though, which might help Prince Haul loosen up a bit.

Just a bit though. You want him receptive to your advice, not irresponsible like your father.

"We'll ask some of our acquaintances and prepare a list of suggestions for you, if you'd like," Evan says.

"That would be splendid, thank you," you say. "I'll have one of my people come by in a few days."

Myrddin will want to look through the list himself to pick out the best parties for your current plans and you want to give him some time to complete his ongoing projects.

"That settles it then." Stasya pinches her skirt and curtseys. "Thank you for visiting us, your highness. Eleri's letters were always cheerful, but it's nice to see she how happy she is in person."

>"Eleri's happiness is important to me."
>"Eleri's working quite hard in Degfford."
>"You should come north to pay us a visit when you can."

>>1346514

>"You should come north to pay us a visit when you can."

>>1346514
>>"Eleri's happiness is important to me."

>>1346514
>>"You should come north to pay us a visit when you can."

File: Eleri4.jpg (115 KB, 595x842)

115 KB JPG

>>1346514
"You should come north to pay us a visit when you can," you say. "Degfford's population has increased much yet, but the infrastructure is improving quite smoothly."

"I'm hoping to build a theatre soon," Eleri says. "Or as soon as the other, more 'important' projects are out of the way."

"A city has many needs, but unfortunately, it's impossible to make more time," you say. "Don't worry too much. We'll get around to it."

"My wife and I will be glad to visit, your highness," Evan says. "We're doing well enough now thanks to your help that we can hire trustworthy people to manage our affairs while we travel. It makes things much less stressful for us."

"I'm glad you're doing well, father," Eleri says. "I promise I'll come by a few more times while I'm here."

You take your leave and walk back towards the palace, holding Eleri's hand along the way.

"That went well," you say. "I didn't think our mothers would be so similar though."

"Mother loves to teach children how to dance and sing," Eleri says. "She says they make the most enthusiastic pupils since everything seems so wonderful to them."

"Doesn't that just mean they're naïve?"

"Please don't ruin the sentiment, your highness."

>Update Myrddin on your party plans.
>See how Reagan is doing.

>>1346619
>>Update Myrddin on your party plans.

>>1346619
>>See how Reagan is doing.

>>1346619
>>Update Myrddin on your party plans.

>>1346619
>>See how Reagan is doing.

Rolled 1 (1d2)

Busy night for ties today.

>>1346622
>>1346659
1

>>1346624
>>1346660
2

File: Myrddin7.jpg (34 KB, 1280x720)

34 KB JPG

>>1346619
"I need to go see Myrddin," you say. "Can you let Reagan and Olwen know?"

"Sure." Eleri gives you a kiss. "Have fun with your dark plots."

"I usually do until things go horribly wrong."

Myrddin's back in his old haunt. The place is covered in dust, so you know no one's been around to clean up, but he's still putting some of his books and ledgers in their rightful place on the otherwise empty shelves, so you also know that the room was completely empty while you were away.

You must admit, it's an impressive display of paranoia.

"Myrddin, Eleri's parents have agreed to draw a list of parties for us to attend," you say. "You'll need to go through it and find the good ones."

"That'll be quite helpful, your highness," Myrddin says, "and since you're here, I also have some good news." He takes one of the ledgers from the bookshelf and tosses it on his deck. "I have a basic profile for Celdwyn."

Myrddin's notes are detailed. Your cousin preys on people who are successful in high-risk markets, have few assets of their own, and enough standing to have a chance at success, but not enough to request help if they find themselves threatened. Desperate people, basically, but not so desperate that they have to barter for pennies. He wants people who are looking for their big break.

"This isn't the kind of false identity we can build up on the fly," you say. "Unless you already have some prepared?"

"You can't con an honest man," Myrddin says, "so I groomed some dishonest people for these kinds of situations. I've used them several times in the past without problem and I have some fresh ones ready for Prince Celdwyn."

You can arrange for a meeting to take place at one of the parties you'll be attending. You'll be able to keep a closer look on things and see Celdwyn's proxies and how they operate with your own eyes, but the timing will be a little tricky and you'll need to find a way to get one of Celdwyn's representatives there in the first place.

>[Intrigue/1d12] Make sure a deal takes place at one of the parties.
>[Intrigue/Autosuccess] Keep your distance for now and let Myrddin handle it through his people.

>>1346764
>>[Intrigue/Autosuccess] Keep your distance for now and let Myrddin handle it through his people.

>>1346764
>>[Intrigue/Autosuccess] Keep your distance for now and let Myrddin handle it through his people.

>>1346764
>>[Intrigue/Autosuccess] Keep your distance for now and let Myrddin handle it through his people.

File: Meirion8.jpg (64 KB, 500x479)

64 KB JPG

>>1346764
"I trust you can handle this yourself," you say. "I have other matters to attend to."

"Which brings us to your brother, I imagine," Myrddin says. "Should I build up a dossier on him as well? I don't think it would take very long."

"Maybe," you say. "Has he changed that much since we left?"

"His overall behaviour and personality are, as far as I can tell, the same," Myrddin says. "He's a bit more lighthearted on account of his wife, perhaps, but that's not a major change. However, his responsibilities are greater now and there are some details of his day-to-day work that we simply aren't familiar with. It might not be important, or it might be crucial."

Either way, you certainly can't argue against the value of having sufficiently broad and sufficiently recent intelligence.

"What do you suggest?"

"Given the current time frame? I'd recommend focusing on one of his approach to governance, money, war or diplomacy depending on what you consider most important."

You can focus on one of the other areas later and in any case, supporting Prince Haul and helping him become more responsible in any aspect of his duties is certain to be helpful to his general abilities.

>[Intrigue/1d12] Governance.
>[Intrigue/1d12] Money.
>[Intrigue/1d12] War.
>[Intrigue/1d12] Diplomacy.

>>1346866
>>[Intrigue/1d12] Governance.

>>1346866
>>[Intrigue/1d12] Governance.

>>1346866
Governance. That is the one most likely to get his head off in short order. We can bail him out with a major conflict.

>>1346866
>[Intrigue/1d12] Governance.

>>1346866
>>[Intrigue/1d12] Governance.

File: Meirion.jpg (111 KB, 1280x720)

111 KB JPG

>>1346866
"Let's start with governance."

"That's just about the broadest thing you could ask about," Myrddin says. "Are you sure?"

"Certain," you answer. "I want to know if the Crown Prince is aware of his position as the next King."

"As you wish." Myrddin takes a blank notebook from his desk drawer and slips it into his coat. "I'll let you know what I find."

>Roll 1d12.

Rolled 6 (1d12)

>>1346970

Rolled 9 (1d12)

>>1346970

Rolled 8 (1d12)

>>1346970

File: Margrete1.jpg (19 KB, 320x480)

19 KB JPG

>>1346970
"Let me know when you're done."

"It shouldn't take very long," Myrddin says. "I'll talk to Nimue about it over dinner."

"Thank you."

That's all your work done for the day; all you can do now is exercise patience and wait for your inquiries to bear fruit. In the meantime, you can slacken your collar a little and spend time with your family.

Which also means you get to watch your mother take out chest after chest of tiny clothes for Rhein and Aislin.

This raises many questions. Where did she get all these chests of clothes? Who made them? When did she move them into your room? How did she empty so many of them out between now and the time you woke up?

"Make sure to pick up something practical, yet fashionable," your mother says. "It's never too early to teach them how to dress with assassination attempts in mind. I actually put perfume on Meirion's clothes when he was a baby so he could get used to the smell and learn what to wear that way."

And here are some more questions that you don't even want to ask.

Rhein is being a good sport about letting your mother use him as a doll, but Aislin is sleeping soundly in Olwen's arms.

"They'll need to wear red to match their father," Eleri says. "Maybe we should go a little brighter?"

"No, burgundy's fine," Reagan says. "It'll give them a more mature look."

"Should you really be trying to make babies look mature?" You can't help but ask.

"Never too early," your mother insists.

You sit at the lunch table and take Aislin so Olwen can have a break. It's time for you to comment on baby clothes. You're confident you'll figure out how that works by the time the day's done.

Rolled 4, 3, 2 = 9 (3d6)

>>1347061
How the hell did I fuck up the tag again?

Oh, I forgot the /. Yeah, that's kind of important.

Rolled 8, 6, 3 = 17 (3d8)

>>1347067
Next roll.

Rolled 3 (1d10)

>>1347068
And that's all for today.

As usual, Beleaguered Prince Quest will return on Friday April 14th at 7PM EDT. Until then, goodnight and thanks for playing!

>>1347076
Thanks, QM!

File: zaheerlander.gif (1.43 MB, 478x218)

1.43 MB GIF

>>1347076
cheers, boss