Tuesday, September 20, 2011

Mayro and the House of Jourdain Part 2 ("What's my alignment?")

Now in possession of a little cash, Mayro, Goldo, and Nardon decided to return to the House of Jourdain as customers, ostensibly just for the purpose of gathering information.




Cheongsam woman-3 by sun art space photo
Cheongsam woman-3, a photo by sun art space photo on Flickr.

They were admitted through the front gate and then through the front door and welcomed to the music room, a comfortable lounging area, richly adorned with a unique collection of local and foreign luxuries, including portraits of the House’s original owner, Lord Jourdain. Among the customers there was a samurai from Zipang, one Gamo Mitsu, who tried to pick a fight with Golfo over one of the women. Madam Guto intervened, sending Gamo and his bodyguards upstairs with various companions. This left Mayro & co. nearly alone in the Music Room. The other occupants—a musician, a drowsy merchant and a woman who were sharing a bottle of wine — were magically eased into slumber. After looking behind the paintings and finding nothing, Mayro stole a handful of tael from the sleeping merchant and the party took their leave.
The problem, Mayro, explained, was that he really hadn’t seen anything to justify taking more decisive action. Madam Guto was creepy, but he wasn’t going to just cut down an old woman. The prostitutes seemed happy enough, and didn’t show any signs of being held against their will. During his days of surveillance he had seen a badly-beaten servant woman being ejected from the House, but she had refused to talk to him, and so he was reluctant to speculate as to how she had been injured, who was responsible, or why he, Mayro, should be involved in the administration of justice. The investigation or plunder of the House of Jourdain was only one of several opportunities for adventure recommended by Golfo, and it now seemed to Mayro that some of the other options promised more clearly-delineated adversaries and more loot.

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