Conrad looked at himself (Patreon)

(now HERself) in stunned silence for a long few seconds, then raised his (I mean her) head to stare at me with a strange smoldering expression.

"I see," she said huskily. "Well, if this is how I get my wish, then so be it. Shall I scream and have you chase me, or-"

I wasn't about to let these clumsy Wiles go any further.

"One name guessed, one wish," I blurted. "You only get to use it once, and now I must take it from you so you can't use it again, or tell it to someone else to try and get them to wish on your behalf. That wouldn't be fair."

Conrad had just enough time to look confused before I cast a Gramarye to knock her unconscious.

While she was asleep, I used hypnotic magicks to erase all knowledge of my name from her mind. In its place I put the Elvish phrase "ongean fanda" which would be good for a laugh if Zandar tried questioning this lowfolk sometime later.

"The first thing you must do when you get home," I instructed, "is destroy that blasphemous tome, Gobelet's Confederacy of Fairies and Elves."

This command seriously perturbed Conrad, and she almost awoke from her trance. I modified it so she would only have to destroy the section that revealed my name. She still didn't like it, but the order stuck and I was confident she would do it without thinking, immediately upon arriving at home.

After that, I dragged her back to the spot where she had first discovered Zandar, in front of the still-smoldering ruins of Bunkirk. Presumably, once she awoke, she could find her own way back home from here. I instructed the trees to make sure nobody bothered her while she slept, and under no circumstances to allow her to wander into the woods and possibly find the stone circle.

I pooked back to the circle and pondered what my next move should be. I could check on Zandar using the scry orb. I could make contact with some of my old allies that were still alive and see if they would join me as I tried to rebuild Faerie. Or I could go check on the Princess in the O'Dor household. My itinerary was wide open...

WELL?? What say you, dear readers? It's another rare opportunity to choose what happens next!

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