Editing Chapter 8.05 I

{{Infobox_episode|title=Chapter 8.05 I|published=February 7, 2021|previousChapter=[[Chapter 8.04 T]]|wordcount=31,632|nextChapter=[[Chapter 8.06 RT]]|link=[https://wanderinginn.com/2021/02/07/8-05-i/   Chapter 8.05 I]}}

'''Chapter 8.05 I''' is the 7th chapter of [[Volume 8]]. The '''I''' stands for [[Ilvriss Gemscale|'''I'''lvriss Gemscale]].

::'''Warnings:''' This chapter showcases a section with sensitive content that may be disturbing for some. For more info [https://wanderinginn.com/warnings/ Click Here].

== tl;dr ==
* Ilvriss continues preparations to fight the Necromancer.
* Ilvriss does a hostile takeover for the Potion of Regeneration and sends it to Liscor.
==Synopsis==
While inspecting one of his mine shafts, Ilvriss collapses and is brought to a reputable [Healer] who diagnoses him with stress and overwork. [Healer] Merla gives him some pills to help him sleep and instructs him to sleep at least 8 hours each night. Ilvriss returns to his home and finds his family waiting to hear how he's doing. Navine suspects that his recent collapse is because he fell for Erin and is now mourning her. Though he's been working constantly since his return, since Erin's death, he seems to have lost the hope that was keeping him going. In the morning, after sleeping a full night's sleep due to the pills, he goes to his old [Weapon Trainer], Zelir, for lessons. He's trying to learn an entire school of swordmanship, one that will be good at fighting undead. After the lesson, he talks with Zelir about his task force and the lack of high-leveled individuals in Drake cities. Zelir attributes it to differences in Drake and Human culture. Drakes have well-trained standing armies and try not to take unnecessary risks with their forces, so they have increased the average level, but at the cost of have high-level individuals. 

After the lesson and discussion, Ilvriss goes to talk with Alrric about some recent requests. Alrric has been searching for a Potion of Regeneration, but there isn't one in the Gemscale vaults and the only known owner isn't selling. The search for high-leveled individuals also has not turned up any new possible recruits and Ilvriss muses out loud on his conversation with Zelir. This prompts Alrric to bring up the use-case of Salii who used to be the highest-leveled [Secretary] in Salazsar and who kept taking on challenging tasks to keep leveling. Ilvriss requests to get in contact with Salii to see if she help with his task force. Antsy about his lack of recent action, Ilvriss takes Osthia to hire a couple of elite groups from the Gem Regiments to be under her command.

Tasilt and Brilm, having heard about his stress, whisk Ilvriss away and bring him to ''The Drake's Pearl'', a brothel. After much protest and rejecting nearly all the advances, Ilvriss is strong-armed into a room with Xesci. She encourages him to just sit and talk for long enough to get his friends off his back and he eventually ends up relaxing and asking her about her work. After some teasing, he gets curious about why she thinks he wouldn't want her and encourages her to show him her [Skill]. She transforms into Periss, startling Ilvriss who draws a sword on her. After the ruckus settles, they begin to talk about it and he arranges an appointment to talk with her tomorrow. He requests that she never wear Periss' form again. On his way back home, he stumbles across a piece of graffiti depicting Wall Lady Gisha and Wall Lord Rellmell smirking and holds bags of money as they shove a Gnoll out the window, and spies a Drake fleeing from the scene.

In the morning, he meets with Osthia, who reports that the elite group is doing well. Shriekblade, who has been acting as his bodyguard and was missing the entire day before, shows up just before Ilvriss' morning sword lesson and accompanies him. Scornful of the training, she provokes Zelir into a fight where she breaks his arm. After sending Zelir off to be healed, Shriekblade reveals to Ilvriss that she has a voice in her head that's always telling her to kill herself. Disturbed, he sends her to Osthia to kill monsters for the day and requests that she meet with him in the evening to talk.

Ilvriss meets with Helessia and Navine, who are preparing to leave for the party is Oteslia soon. Navine mentions that she is sad to miss the drama around Sellme's newest painting, which was the graffiti that Ilvriss had seen the night before. Sellme is apparently an artist who arrived in Salazsar shortly after Ilvriss left and does graffiti depicting social issues. The Emera company, owned by Wall Lord Rellmell and run by his sister, Wall Lady Gisha, is under fire for trying to renege on their contract with their workers. Their workers should receive a portion of the profits from each seam mined, but they have found magical stones, so the Emera company is firing all their workers and hiring new ones to avoid having to pay out the profits from the magical stones. Later, during his discussion with Alrric, Wall Lord Rellmell and Sellme come up again. Alrric informs Ilvriss that Sellme used to be in Fissival making fun of the Scholarium before coming to Salazsar and leaves cities to avoid capture. Alrric had brought up Rellmell because he apparently also owns a Potion of Regeneration that he's not selling. Alrric also informs Ilvriss that his uncle, Nerul, is back in town, having succeeded at his mission.

Newly back from having arranged a treaty with the Trisstral Alliance, Nerul goes out to eat with Ilvriss, where they talk and bond for the first time. Nerul is the black sheep of the family and so previously had a poor relationship with Ilvriss. This time, Ilvriss asks him about his work and listens to how Nerul charmed the Alliance and changed their opinions of Salazsar as a whole. Ilvriss appreciates his high level and skills and Nerul points out that aside from the military, all high-leveled drakes are oddballs, indicating that it may be due to their culture.

Ilvriss returns to have his discussion with Xesci. They talk about her abilities and she explains that she can sense anyone that he has ever been attracted to. She confirms that, for him, that list is mostly Drakes, but also includes two Gnolls and one Human. Ilvriss asks if she can change her gender and takes her hesitation as a yes. He also asks if there are people she can't sense anything from and she says she has found at least one person like that and it seems to have disturbed her. He then confirms the appearance of the Human and meets with Rellmell, who refuses to sell him the potion, indicating that his sister would be furious.

Ilvriss returns home for his meeting with Shriekblade and reads [Messages] passed on from Alrric while he waits. He ponders terminating her contract since he's not about to move on Az'kerash yet. Still pondering the [Messages], he enters his personal chambers to find Shriekblade waiting, naked. Stunned, he snaps at her to get dressed and leaves his chambers, requesting an alcoholic drink. He cannot bring himself to drink it and imagines Erin's reaction and punches himself in the face. Thinking on it, Ilvriss realizes that some of the other people who have hired Shriekblade must have requested sexual favors from her and so apologizes for his reaction. He clarifies that his request was for her to teach him how to fight and encourages her to both stop using the potions constantly and to not perform sexual favors as part of her contracts.

The next morning, Ilvriss wakes up in pain from the training session, having found that he leveled overnight. He reluctantly schedules another training session for him and Osthia with Shriekblade that night, then notices a [Message] from the previous night. It's a request from the Horns of Hammerad to Liscor, calling on all adventuring teams associated with Erin to join them on their attempt on the Village of the Dead. Ilvriss rushes to his office and begins plans to act. He asks Shriekblade how much it would cost to send her and begins to send [Messages] to hire Named Adventurers and Gold-Rank teams to join the Horns. He then sends Shriekblade out on a mission and talks with his uncle to convince him to help him with a plan. 

Ilvriss storms into ''The Drake's Pearl'' and demands to see Xesci. He offers her enough money to retire if she will do a job for him for a year or two. In the streets of Salazsar, Shriekblade is chasing Sellme with some of the Erhirite Spears (one of the Gem Regiment teams hired to work under Osthia). Ilvriss joins the chase and citizens suspect that Ilvriss is trying to silence Sellme, but Sellme escapes by painting a door.

Wall Lord Rellmel and Wall Lady Grisia, having heard about the disappearance of Sellme, are dining together, pleased about the news, when they are warning about an incoming negotiation-raid. They are unable to escape in time and are forced into negotiations with Nerul and his team for the purchase of the Potion of Regeneration. They eventually reveal that the potion is only 1/3 full and agree to a price that Ilvriss inflates to ease the offense. Ilvriss sends the potion off to Liscor and sends a [Message] to the Horns to ask them to wait. Ilvriss gathers together Xesca, Nerul, Shriekblade, and Osthia to test their allegiances with an artifact. Once confirmed, he tells them of Az'kerash and they make plans to go to Oteslia to find allies.

==Characters==
( * = ''First Appearance'')

*[[Ilvriss Gemscale]]
*Graer - [Foremen] *
*[[Tessa|Tessa / Shriekblade]]
*[[Merla Topaz]] - [Renowned Tincturist] *
*[[Osthia Blackwing]] (as Shieldscale)
*[[Navine Gemscale]]
*[[Zail Gemscale]]
*[[Helessia Gemscale]]
*[[Zelir]] - [Weapon Trainer] *
*[[Zel Shivertail]] (''Mentioned'')
*[[Alrric Kerrfa]]
*[[Salii]] (''Mentioned'')
*? - Female Drake [Lieutenant] *
*Erchirite Spears (Battalion-strength group) *
*Presz - [Battle Captains] *
*Rubirel Guard (only 16) *
*[[Tasilt]]
*[[Brilm]]
*Employees of ''The Drake’s Pearl''
**[[Xesci]] - [Courtesan of Change] *
**Aranna *
**Shakra *
**? / Medroniaria *
**Menorra *
**? - Fake Receptionist *
**? - [Manager]
**? - Gnoll [Bouncer] *
**Reta (''Mentioned'')
*[[Sisters of Chell]] (''Mentioned'')
*[[Periss Veldant]] (''Mentioned'')
*[[Tesy|? / Sellme]] *
*[[Nerul Gemscale]] - [Diplomat] *
*Dellek’s Council *
**? - First Scale of Dellek
*Cells - Dellek’s Watch Captain *
*Rellmel Emera *
*Yern - [Head of Household] *
*[[Dragial]] (''Only as a Missive'')
*[[Erin Solstice]] (''Imaginary'')
*[[Ceria Springwalker]] (''Only as a Missive'')
*[[Keldrass]] (''Missive To'')
*[[Merdon]] (''Only as a Missive'')
*[[Elia Arcsinger]] (''Only as a Missive'')
*Gisha Emera *
*? - Rellmel’s Gnoll [Bodyguard] *
*Vidam - [Silvertongue Emissary] *
*Nerul's Negotiators team (x5) *
**Grerre
**Weressna / The Sealer
**? / Mister Superior
*Emera Family Negotiators (x6) *
*[[Az’kerash]] (''Mentioned'')
*[[Magnolia Reinhart]] (''Mentioned'')

==Locations==

*[[Izril]]
**[[Salazsar]]
***Mining Shaft #4
*** Merla’s Clinic
***Gemscale Family Tower
*** Outdoor Training Court
***Gemscale Company Headquarters
***Military Tower (one of many)
***''The Drake’s Pearl'' = Brothel
***''The Ancestor’s View'' = Restaurant
**Dellek
**Selmis
**[[Village of the Dead]] (''Mentioned'')

==Items==

*Spectacles of Identification
* Sleeping Purple Pills
*Mirror of Wellness
*Floating Bed
*Potion of Regeneration (1/3 Full - ''Mentioned'')
*Ring of Greater Fireball
*[[Dreamleaf]] cigar
* Ring of Silence
*Firebreath Whiskey
*Anti-Appraisal Ring
*Ring of [Haste]
*Amulet of Protection
*Diadem of Inner Thoughts

==Statistics Revealed==

====Merla Topaz====

*Classes/Levels = [Renowned Tincturist]

====Zelir====

*Classes/Levels = [Weapon Trainer]
*Skills:
**[Parry Blade]
**[Parry Blade — Sevenfold Reserve]
**[Fast Backstep]

====Xesci====

*Classes/Levels = [Courtesan of Change] Lv. ? (High-Level)

====Ilvriss Gemscale====

*Skills:
**[Flurry Strikes]
**[Reaching Slash]

====Nerul Gemscale====

*Classes/Levels = [Diplomat] Lv. ? (50+)
*Skills:
**[A Gradual Change of Disposition]
**[Peacekeeper's Pass]
**[Come to the Table]
**[Think About It]
**[Sweeten the Deal]

====Vidam====

*Classes/Levels = [Silvertongue Emissary]
*Skills:
**[Request Denied]
**[A Moment of R—]

====Assorted Emera Negotiators====

*Skills:
**[Exit Negotiations]
**[Clear Minds]
**[Future Negotiations]

====Nerul's Team====

*Skills:
**[Let's Make a Deal]
**[Everything Has a Price]
**[See it My Way]
**[Sweeter Deal]

====Mister Superior====

*Skills:
**[Fact Check]

[[Category:Chapters]]
[[Category:Volume 8]]