Received my land claim from the wizards today, all signed and sealed, now delivered as well. The crush of buyers overwhelmed the market at first, thankfully I had already paid a representative to do the footwork for me. Didn't have to experience that disappointment of missing out, I've seen more than one noble cursing and stomping around the docks.
Though honestly, Tunnelworks Ventures is offering their land claims at 40% of the market price, really not much of a difference to a discerning future landholder. A few extra crystals here and there but still a future to be made.
I am still not sure where my land will be, knowing my luck somewhere swampy and full of bugs. Though there is something to be said about resources from the swamps I suppose. I'd rather make my living somewhere clean and with fresh wine, but as the lowborn say: a living is a living.
The queasiness from the chartered ship is gone in full now, the firm land of Praetoria beneath my feet, at once so similar to my homeland and yet totally different. Even the wind feels like it is blowing the wrong direction, ruffling the wrong hair as it swirled about my shoulders.
A stranger in a strange land. I'd read that in a book some time in my youth, a lesson wrapped in the teachings of the old hermits from the hills south of Beluroc. Sages we called them. Smelly and uncouth if you ask me. A touch of civilization would do them good I say. Nevertheless, they had ideas that worked and books that didn't crumble when you opened them. Rare things in this world after the splintering, rare things indeed.
The people milling about here had travelled from all the lands around Praetoria and the intermingling is interesting to say the least. Beasts and men packed together in the seaport south of the central mountains. I saw what appeared to be some sort of cat walking a llama past a squad of Naga soldiers drinking on a tavern's patio.
The food is palatable, certainly not as flavourful as back home, but hearty and filling. After weeks of jerky, the occasional shrivelled apple and buckets of barely cooked fish, the warm, simple meal I'd been served sated me nicely. The wine leaves something to be desired however, though it has eased my mind for this bout of writing.
Somewhere to rest my head will be the next chore. The Inn room is comfortable, and cleaner than most in this port. But to go from the family manor to these barren, drafty rooms is... jarring to say the least.
The allure of land has been a sparkling beacon in my journey, I just hope it's all worth the wait. I'm told I will at least have a keep to go along with my new title, it will be interesting to see what can be done to establish a new House Kell here in Praetoria.
But before the day I arrive on my land, I must be prepared to keep it.
I must prepare myself. I must train and find allies.
Derian Kell, third of that name, second son of House Kell.