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(suspenseful music plays) The Thieves Guild

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by Jake Kerr.

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Episode 29:

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The Blade of the Guildmaster.

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The first meeting of the Thieves Guild captains
under their new Guildmaster was not

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going well, and Maylor couldn't quite blame them.

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Raylan was racing off to deal with Karch and
couldn't attend and without him

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there, the captains were left with nothing but
stories of his irresponsibility.

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To make matters worse, the way he received the
Guildmastership was itself insulting to the

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Guild. It was done as a punishment.

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Maylor gave mild endorsement to Raylan, but she
herself felt insulted over how

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he was named the Guildmaster.

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There were 10 thief captains and Maylor was the
captain of the Flats.

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It was an important position. Not only did many
thieves live in the Flats, but the

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Knight Tower at the edge of the district was her
responsibility.

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She was the critical person responsible for
keeping tabs on the Guild

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charged with eradicating thieves.

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Deputy Guildmaster Allard wielded his influence
well, however, and as the

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meeting wound down, everyone was at least
begrudgingly accepting of

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Raylan's new role as their Guildmaster.

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Maylor found the entire proceeding amusing.

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She considered Raylan as nothing more than a
figurehead, and arguing

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over him pointless. The real Guildmaster was
Allard.

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Allard moved on to the practical matter of the
unstable political situation in

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Ness, specifically the threat to the city by the
potential assassination of

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Polo, the Guildmaster Harvest.

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Allard stood at the end of a long, rough-hewn
wooden table near the very top of the

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ancient tower. There were five men on one side and
four men and one woman on the

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other. Rafe sat at the opposite side from Allard.

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"Callias, you will need to get to Polo and warn
him about the assassination

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risk. He is well-defended against a known enemy,
but he doesn't know what he faces in an outlander.

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Also, if he were to stop the outlander, Larson
could still win if Polo were to

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inadvertently rally the city to Sax and Larson's
sides due to a collective hatred of the

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outlanders."

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Maylor had anticipated that Callias would get the
job, as he was captain of the Harvest

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district, but she had serious doubts about him.

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He was old and well-liked by everyone.

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The late Guildmaster Pietro had named Callias as a
captain many

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years earlier,

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but managing the mood of the Harvest Guild members
was one thing.

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Getting past Polo's defenses to say the right
thing in the right way to warn him

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of an outlander assassin was something else
entirely.

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Maylor wanted the mission for the simple reason
that she felt she was the only one in

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the Guild who could actually succeed at it.

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Knowing that she would never be given the job as
long as she was captain of the Flats,

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Maylor decided to use a bit of guild knowledge
that Pietro had taught her in a

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history lesson before he had died. "Isn't that the
job for the Blade of the Guildmaster?"

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Maylor asked.

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Every face at the table turned to her. "What are
you talking about, Maylor?

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There is no such position."

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It was Kalos, the captain of the Warehouse
district.

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He was the highest-ranking captain as he had to
oversee the dangerous theft of

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goods from the Ness warehouses. He was ferociously
loyal to the Thieves Guild,

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but also had no patience for niceties.

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"There is no position now, but it is a traditional
guild position.

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Sneaking in and warning Polo is exactly the type
of role the blade would fill."

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Maylor realized she had to sell two things, the
role of the position

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itself and then her being the one to fill the
role.

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"Maylor, there has not been a Thief Guild blade
for over 50 years.

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While your logic is correct, this is the kind of
mission the blades would historically fill.

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We simply have no blade."

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Allard's calm, deep voice was meant to close the
discussion.

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"I don't even know what this blade position is,"
Miyo, the young captain of the Plains

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said.

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Allard sighed, "It is a traditional position of
the guilds.

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It originally was the title of the Guildmaster's
personal bodyguard, but it has changed over the

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centuries into the role of spy or assassin.

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The Blade of the Guildmaster for the Merchant
Guild is who we believe assassinated Pietro."

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There was a murmur of voices. Everyone knew that
Pietro had been assassinated, but there

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was no proof, and his great age made the
accusation difficult to

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believe.

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Allard held up his hand. "I hear the anger in your
muttering, and this is

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exactly why Pietro eliminated the position when he
took over as Guildmaster.

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Thieves do not assassinate, nor do we seek
vengeance.

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We take so we can give."

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We take so we can give. It was the motto of the
Thieves Guild,

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which stole from those with excess to give to
those with

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little. "This is my chance," Maylor thought.

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"But the role of the blade is not for other guilds
to define."

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Maylor slammed her fist on the table.

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Marshaling anger against the other guilds was a
surefire method to get what she wanted.

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"We can have a blade that does good.

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We can have a blade that saves those about to be
executed, who finds out about the evil that other

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guilds do."

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Maylor paused for effect and looked around the
table at all of the faces of her fellow

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captains. "We can have a blade that saves those
about to be

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assassinated."The timing of her comment was
perfect.

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She had linked the lingering pain of Pietro's
assassination with the current mission of

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saving Polo from assassination.

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The murmurs around the table were positive, and
Maela could see lots of nodding heads.

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She glanced at Allard, who was staring into her
eyes in the way that always

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intimidated her.

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It was as if he could see directly into her soul.

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She held his gaze, doing her best to appear both
defiant and righteous.

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Her position was the right one.

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Allard nodded his head, but his reply was not what
she had hoped to hear.

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There is wisdom in your words, Maela, but this is
a decision for the Guildmaster.

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Allard turned back to the others.

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Now, let's discuss how we can help Kallias in his
mission to warn Guildmaster

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Polo.

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With all due respect, Deputy-

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Maela stood up.

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... no one knows more of the Harvest Guild than
Captain Kallias, but we have all heard his report.

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Guildmaster Polo has retreated into Harvest House.

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Even he admitted that he has done such a good job
infiltrating the Harvest Guild rank and file

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that no one there thinks of him as special.

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She turned to Kallias and bowed.

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That is what we need from a guild captain.

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His influence within the Harvest Guild is where we
need it, with those that live near Harvest House
and

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influence things from their day-to-day
conversations.

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She turned back to Allard.

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But it is not what we need from a Blade.

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We need someone who can mislead, hide, sneak, and
divert attention,

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and...

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Maela patted the knife at her hip.

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... utilize precise violence when necessary.

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She didn't humiliate Kallias by looking at him.

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Everyone knew he was too old to do any of the
physical things that Maela had mentioned.

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No one said anything, and Maela couldn't tell what
was going through Allard's mind.

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She felt strongly he would agree with her, but it
appeared he was thinking long and hard over her

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words. Finally, he spoke up.

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Apprentice Rafe, what is your opinion of what the
Guildmaster would think of us making such

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a decision without him?

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Rafe jerked to attention. He seemed surprised that
anyone had

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called on him.

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Um, I don't think he would much care, other than
that the right decision was being made.

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Maela couldn't help but smile. Raelynn was
reckless, and ignorant,

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and maddening, but there was no denying he had a
good heart and didn't much stand for

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proper procedure. She could have hugged Rafe at
that moment.

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Thank you, Rafe. I happen to agree with both you
and Captain Maela.

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He turned to Kallias.

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Captain Kallias, I believe I've done you a
disservice by asking you to risk your important

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and critical role as captain for a mission that
very well may hurt us, even if you were
successful.

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Allard crossed his arms and looked out at
everyone.

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So the question before us is, who shall we name to
this temporary position of Blade, with the

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knowledge that this will be a temporary assignment
until the Guildmaster returns?

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Give it to Maela. She obviously wants it.

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The speaker was Rogers, the captain of the Lower
Triangle, and his voice was full of sarcasm

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and unspoken criticism. He didn't like Maela, and
she could never figure out

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why. The Lower Triangle bordered the Flats, and so
she and Rogers had to work

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together fairly often, but he was always
dismissive, if not insulting.

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To Maela's concern, Kude, the captain of the Old
Quarter, cleared his throat to get

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attention in preparation for speaking.

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Kude was the only other captain who didn't like
Maela.

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He was very powerful in his role as captain of the
Old Quarter.

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His job was more bureaucratic than the other
captains.

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He was to make sure that the Old Quarter ran well
like a proper city while also remaining

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outside the attention of the city across the
river.

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Maela had spurned his romantic interest, and he
did not take it well,

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which led to his constant criticism of her.

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Before Kude could say anything, however, Allard's
booming voice filled the room.

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An excellent idea, Captain Rogers. We will make
Maela our temporary Guild Blade.

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Allard uncrossed his arms and softened his voice.

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Unfortunately, your good idea has increased your
responsibility.

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We have no time to find a new captain of the
Flats, so I will add that to your duties until the

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Guildmaster returns.

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Maela admired Allard's political cunning.

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Kude gave up knowing anything he said would be
dismissed.

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Beyond shutting down Kude, Allard had also
dismissed the criticism of Maela

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implied in Rogers' tone of voice while making
Rogers feel more important by giving him

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additional responsibilities, and he did it by
taking the responsibility

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away from Maela.

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To everyone in the room, Allard had just punished
Maela and rewarded Rogers.

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Meanwhile, Maela was left with a position that
never existed and may not exist upon

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the Guildmaster Raelynn's return. It was hard to
suppress her smile.

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Maela had no intention of failing in her mission,
and she had no intention of becoming

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a captain again.

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She was and forever would be the Blade of the
Guildmaster.

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(dramatic music)