Aurabella rode her favorite purebred horse, a handsome dark cherry bay, down the steep mountain pass that led away from her home. She wore an elegant black cloak, embroidered with a golden braid design at the edges. She stopped to take in the view of the sparkling waters of the Redfall river below. The hues of the water danced and mingled, reflecting the red granite and pink quartz in the river-bed. Through the fog, she could faintly see a daunting fort across the river in the neighboring kingdom of Ashland. Her horse snorted, his breath steaming in the crisp air, eager to keep going. It wasn’t long ago that the river had been frozen over and the snow too deep to traverse.

Aura urged her steed forward. She fondly remembered playing on the bridge that led to the county of Bergental years ago. She recalled her mother scolding her, “Away from there, there has been talk of bandits in the east.” She looked down at her tattered brown riding gloves with a twinge of sadness: they were a gift from her mother. Both of her parents had passed during the Longest Night, and only a few hours ago, she had been officially named Countess. Although she had been born and bred to lead, she felt overwhelmed. She was too young.

She made her way through the mountain town of Daen’hold: originally named Dæn, which suited the Hroth. Two generations ago the Neran citizens convinced the council to have the town renamed, arguing that it would be easier for travellers. Since then, most of the Neran moved to more temperate climates, giving up the wealth of the mountains. The county's Denhørt name, O’kintük, remained untouched. Aura was proud of her home, which was steeped in northern Hrothi culture. She passed the statues of Harbos (charity) and Kedryn (kindness) which had been beautifully crafted by the renowned artisans of her county and funded by Nareveth’s School of Craft. In the distance, she could see the glow of the vast foundry built into the mountainside, and the entrance to the mine nearby. On her way, she nodded to the martialsmith who looked up, smiled and half-bowed, and went back to work. A young woman stopped her work setting a beautiful green gemstone onto a delicate silver ring to greet the Countess. Aura solemnly nodded. Further along the way, Aura halted to inspect the progress the Brudvir from the sister settlement were making setting up defenses on the borders of the town. She was glad their work was only precautionary. She used to play with children from Bergental on the Redfall bridge. She had also met Marchwarden Bellême, known as ‘Trug’ to a few, on many occasions. Those closest to him described him as ‘good’ and ‘tenderhearted.’ However, Aura had no doubt he would squash any aggressor.

She finally made it out of the mountains and onto the trade route. The trade route was bustling with traffic, and many carts were loading up foodstuffs from the large farms on the south side of the road. She made her way east towards the bridge, which was lined with fishermenn, plying their rods and reels. There, she waited for a package to arrive that would be addressed to the Duke of Nareveth.