Introduction to Marzena

The first to speak up is the figure sitting directly to your left, Marzena. "You worry too much, Zoe. Who cares if a few old hags with cobwebs between their legs complain? I came from the Crownlands, you know, and all the young men would make secret plans to visit Undrek while they thought no-one was listening. I know what you're driving at and my position is the same. Just let me and all the other girls of the Crooked Tower start openly soliciting new 'prisoners' from magistrates across Itheria. We're the soul of Undrek, you know."

Marzena was the kind of young woman who managed to be curvaceous, delicate and feminine yet show an undeniable wicked aspect at the same time. With long black hair and sultry eyes with a lot of eyeshadow and a perpetual half-lidded stare, plus an adorable perfectly-placed mole on her cheek, she was the sort of women that jealous wives would call a witch even if she were not literally a witch (she was, of course). Marzena's long, enticing legs were shown off by a short navy-blue dress with a ruffled skirt that barely went halfway down to her knees, and she had a habit of deliberately sitting with her legs uncrossed.

But aside from her beauty, a couple of accessories caught the eye about Marzena. First was her oversized pointy hat with brim nearly a meter in diameter, a stylized exaggeration of the typical hat choice of witches according to the popular imagination.

Secondly, even here at the breakfast table, her wrists were bound together with a light pair of gleaming silver shackles connected with a length of chain. They were specifically designed to be light and easy to wear, but she was forbidden to take them off except temporarily when under the direct supervision of you or one of your magistrates.

This was one of the ways that the Countesses of Undrek had historically toed the line and found loopholes in the laws of Itheria for their own benefit. Malefic spellcasters - not merely practitioners of unpopular forms of magic, but those who actually trafficked with demons and curses - were hunted down and burned across most of Itheria, or (at best) left to rot in dungeons.

Thanks to a long-standing bargain with the Coven of Magi, however, the town of Undrek, with utmost discretion, generously took these tainted souls off the hands of other duchies and counties to "imprison" them in the Crooked Tower. Since this was a more comfortable and free existence than convicted maleficars could otherwise hope for, many actually traveled to Undrek solely to surrender themselves as a sanctuary against other witch-hunters pursuing them. They had to wear silver shackles at all times (preventing them from casting evil magics, at least in theory) but were otherwise free to roam the town as long as they returned to their rooms in the Crooked Tower each night before curfew.

Undrek benefited greatly from providing a haven for these witches and wretches, particularly the beautiful women like Marzena; the Crooked Tower was not merely a (rather luxurious) prison, but a brothel that travelers could make use of - the most famous in all Undrek, as it so happened. Marzena had been an acquaintance of yours when you visited the Crownlands, and upon hearing that she had been arrested and was awaiting in a dungeon, you had her brought here and placed her as your personal liason to the Crooked Tower (she didn't have authority over the day-to-day operations, but she didn't want the responsibility anyway).

"Hmm," you give her a patient smile. "Well, I don't disagree that our fair county can always use more wickedly tempting women, but is this really the time? There is still the matter of those unsolved murders. I mean, arcane circles and runes painted on the cobblestones-"

"Ohhhhh fuck Zoe! We've been over this! Every inhabitant of the Tower has been interrogated and all had alibis when that happened. If you want my opinion, it was done by owners of the town's lesser brothels out of jealousy that so many of their potential customers come to us first." Marzena snorts indelicately and shovels some crepe into her mouth. She was from a noble family, technically, but one of such low means that she had the manners of a peasant. Since she'd been literally branded as evil when she was 17 years old, she had never seen much point in learning to be more polite, and in particular she was blunt in discussing sexual matters to a degree that would make a hardened mercenary blush.

Well - except for the hardened mercenary sitting across from you, that is. The long-haired platinum blonde elven man on the other end of the table yawned theatrically and cocked his head to the side. "Oh please, not another tedious tangent about the complex economics of whore-dom. If you aren't careful, Marzena, you will get Brigid over there talking about the exact sums and figures involved." he said, indicating your dwarfish royal treasurer (who was patiently awaiting her turn to have you sign off on some expenses, staring at you from the corner).

The elf continued, placing a hand on his chest. "Though I care not for mine own life, our fair Countess is too young to die from boredom, so I must insist that you listen to some absolutely delectable gossip I have regarding the nobility of the southern coast instead..."

The spectacled dark-skinned woman with her hair in a severe bun at your other side sneered at the elf and mockingly made a 'yap yap yap' gesture with her hand. "Yes, far be it from me to interrupt your stories of who is bedding who with any of the trade ties and long-term commercial trends that require Countess Zoe's attention."