Aozaki Aoko Case File [473] (Patreon)

“What? What’s going on?” At this point, Edgin, having overheard the conversation between Aoko and Simon, walked over with a confused look.

“A cleric?”

“This staff,” Aoko shook the Spellsparkler Staff in her hand, “its previous owner—one of the two masters of this wizard’s tower—was a cleric of Mystra. When I came into contact with this staff, I also became a cleric of Mystra…”

“Wait, is it really that easy to become a cleric of a god?” Doric asked, equally puzzled. “And as far as I remember, most wizards don’t believe in gods…”

“There’s another case,” Xenk suddenly spoke up, looking thoughtful. “That is, if the god seeks you out themselves—inviting Miss Aoko to become a cleric.”

“But how is that possible?” Edgin was baffled. “I’ve known a few clerics in the past, but none of them were anything like Aoko, unless—”

“Unless Aoko is Mystra’s Chosen,” Simon said. “That would make sense. Chosen are hand-picked by gods, and at first, they don’t really need to have faith.”

Aoko pursed her lips, thinking: You guys can keep guessing even more wildly—maybe you’ll actually get closer to my real situation…

“I’m not the goddess’s Chosen…” Aoko sighed. “But she did communicate with me through this staff, which stabilizes divine magic. She drew me into the depths of the Weave.”

“If I can complete the series of trials she assigned me, I might advance to become a Chosen,” Aoko said honestly. “Right now, the cleric level and the experience in the deeper Weave are just my initial rewards.”

“Wait, I’m a bit lost,” Edgin said, rubbing his head. “You becoming a cleric—what does that have to do with us facing off against Sofina, or exploring this arcane tower?”

“Sigh. Let’s talk on the first floor of the tower. There are too many bugs here,” Aoko said with a bit of annoyance, heading for the hidden passage leading upstairs.

A moment later, everyone had passed through the pitch-black hidden corridor and returned to the first floor, with its magic-powered generator. They found a table and some chairs and sat down to talk.

“Let’s start with the two owners of this tower,” Aoko began. “First, they were a couple.”

“You can tell from the details,” Edgin added. “Like the double beds and the poems and all that.”

“You’ve always been sharp about that sort of thing,” Holga teased from the side.

“What do you mean ‘that sort of thing’? I’m sharp about everything, okay?” Edgin grumbled. “Why else was I the one making plans in our old thieves’ crew?”

“Heh,” Holga just chuckled, thinking: Your planning was so great, you planned us all into prison…

“One was a gnome wizard named Yrre,” Aoko continued, “and the other was Lenore, a human cleric who worshipped the goddess of magic, Mystra.”

“Yrre was quite the researcher of lightning and lightning magic. This magic-electric conversion generator is his masterpiece,” Aoko said. “He met and fell in love with cleric Lenore by chance. Later, to study certain magical phenomena in the Underdark, they came here and built this tower.”

“Wait, I think I’ve heard the name Yrre before,” Edgin interrupted. “Back in Baldur’s Gate, there was a famous wizard, nicknamed ‘Yrre the Sparkstruck.’ Could it be him?”

“Almost certainly,” Aoko nodded. “He later came to live in the Underdark with Lenore. They were happy for a time and even built the construct Bernard as their butler.”

“So why did they leave?” Doric asked. “I haven’t seen any bodies in the tower.”

“They did leave,” Aoko replied, “but not at the same time.”

“After living in the Underdark for a while, Yrre developed his proudest technology—converting magic into electricity,” Aoko continued. “To make a name for himself, he left Lenore, promising to return for her soon.”

“He broke his promise?” Holga asked.

“No, he didn’t,” Aoko shook her head. “But communication between Yrre and Lenore wasn’t easy. The magical radiation in the Underdark made normal sending spells unreliable.”

“The letter we found earlier was the one Lenore left before deciding to go look for Yrre herself. She left the tower after Yrre had been gone for a while.”

“Did they ever find each other?” Doric asked quietly.

“Apparently not,” Aoko shook her head. “On the back of that letter was Yrre’s note after returning to the tower. By the time he came back, Lenore was gone.”

“In the end, Yrre waited in the tower for a long time, but eventually decided to leave as well.”

“That’s a really sad story,” Edgin summarized. “But what does it have to do with you becoming a cleric of Mystra?”

“Well, since I wasn’t a follower of Mystra to begin with, I couldn’t just meet’ her,” Aoko half-truthfully explained. “So some coincidences brought me to this tower, where I found Lenore’s staff, blessed by Mystra.”

“What test did Mystra give you?” Xenk asked, looking thoughtful.

Aoko didn’t want to reveal her real relationship with Mystra, so she spun a partial, embellished version for her teammates.

“Tyrant God Bane,” Aoko answered concisely.

“What’s that got to do with Bane?” Edgin was baffled. “Sure, Harpers have always fought against Bane and his followers, but I’m not a Harper anymore…”

“Wait, I think I get it,” Xenk suddenly said. “Szass Tam, the current leader of Thay, sacrificed his soul to Bane to get enough power to rule.”

“Exactly,” Aoko nodded. “So Mystra thinks sending me to deal with Szass Tam’s lackey Sofina is a good test for me. Even though she usually doesn’t meddle in mortal affairs, she really dislikes gods like Bane—let alone wizards like Szass Tam who have joined Bane.”