Chapter 221: Mostly Intact Manor
The Library was naturally the first place that Alexis went, and found that the room was nearly untouched by time, and undamaged, except for one large brazier in the middle of the room, where a number of books had been burned before the door was locked.
The effect had actually preserved the library itself, as it had kept the initial moisture out of the room, and the windowless Library was sealed against the elements.
She could feel that there was also magic in place over the room, but Alexis couldn’t tell what sort of spell it might have been.
All that mattered was that the books were alright.
A quick examination of gaps in shelves and a few unburnt portions of the books in the brazier revealed that it was the household bookkeeping for the most recent years before the war.
Whoever had set the fire had been destroying anything that could be used as a content listing by thieves, or evidence of assets and income by enemy Nobles who might put survivors on trial.
The Dagos soldiers never got the chance to fully ransack the building. At most, they had caused minor damages and grabbed a few convenient valuables when they captured the residents after the main battle in the courtyard.
Even most of the statues and ornamental items remained in the alcoves of the main hall.
Now that she was certain that the books were secure, Alexis moved from the Library to the study. It had also been locked tight and left untouched, but the floor outside showed signs that a body had been dragged from here.
The blood still stained the wood of the floor.
Inside, the study was absolutely destroyed. Furniture had been hacked apart, deep claw marks had gouged the walls and torn the bookshelves apart, destroying many ancient tomes.
But the most telling sign of battle was one mummified maid, still in her uniform, with draconic claws extending from her fingertips, but dozens of wounds on her body.
Long dried blood turned the entire floor to russet brown, but Alexis gave a grim smile as she noticed that the maid had died sitting on an ornate wooden chair, arms placed on her lap, like a queen overseeing her realm.
Which meant that the remainder of the blood should have come from Dagos soldiers, or whoever had fought alongside her in this room, before the door was closed and locked.
A faint breeze from somewhere caused the door to creak, and Alexis turned to find that there was a small fireplace in the corner, hidden under rubble from a destroyed cabinet.
That must have been what pushed the door closed.
Alexis closed and locked the study door, and then took a piece of chalk from her storage ring and marked it with an X to keep others out.
The smoking room revealed nothing but a charred carpet, where a discarded cigar had fallen in someone’s haste to join the battle.
No other door on the main floor was locked, though the main office’s door had been kicked in at some point, and hung awkwardly from one hinge.
This room had been ransacked, documents destroyed, and furniture flipped.
But after that, there were no more closed or locked doors, and everything was in generally serviceable condition.
The Royal Guard came down in a good mood, and Alexis heard Liz and Beth joking as they began to sort through the kitchen wares that had been left behind.
They had put in so much effort to get everything that they needed, but when they got here, they found that not even the dishware had been destroyed. Once the house was clean, and the bedding replaced, they could properly host an entire festival here, and not be short on any of the essential kitchenware.
If anything, they might have overpacked for their new household.
However, they would be able to gift some of the excess to new arrivals, or use it to equip the homes of the Master Smith and the Carpenter. Neither of them had brought much with them, and there were no nearby homes intact for them to move into even if they had.
The closest homes were in the village, a few hundred metres away.
But eventually, they would surely want their own space.
Dominic stepped outside when John and his wife stepped outside to inspect the wood on the outside of the building.
"John, a moment before you get to work." Dominic greeted him.
"Yes, My Lord. How can I help?"
"About your wife. I suspect that she’s going to need more than just a change of scenery to recover. She doesn’t act without direct orders anymore, and she definitely needs the rest. So I will suggest that she is put on bed rest.
Once she is recovered, she can start working again, but it would be best that we not push her." Dominic informed him.
John nodded. "I realized earlier, My Lord. I swear she won’t cause trouble. But she gets anxious if she doesn’t have anything to do. Please don’t shut her away in a room, I don’t think she would survive a month of bed rest."
Dominic frowned in agreement. He wasn’t sure that she would make it a month either way.
"Alright, if you think that it’s best, she can help the others to clean the house. Anything that is rotted needs to be removed, and then we can start on remaking beds. The existing ones here are made of wool and animal furs. I don’t know how well they will have survived the years." He offered.
That got the carpenter’s wife suddenly moving again, headed inside.
John frowned, then shrugged. "If it makes her feel useful, it’s fine. I saw some of the beds already, and the top layer needs to be taken out and beaten to get the dust out, but other than that, they should be good enough for now. Whatever magic lingers on this house has prevented any mould from forming."
"Well, we’ve got more than enough new linen to make the beds. Give the ladies time and they’ll have the place presentable again.
Now, did you find anything that might be a safety issue?" Dominic asked.
The carpenter shook his head. "No, My Lord. The house was made to last, and the roof was designed to be constructed without nails. The wood hasn’t decayed much, and the attic was well ventilated, so any damaged wood is purely cosmetic."
Excellent. They could sleep soundly tonight once they cleaned a few rooms.