Life in Zora's Domain

Chapter 108 - Underground Economy

Summary: The Hyrule Treasury needs to mint more Rupees than usual. Queen Zelda asks Link to start investigating.

Link sat at his study table, thinking about how to write this next chapter in his journal, what he should say at this point, and what he should save for later chapters. He was trying to be faithful to events as they occurred, to write things down as they happened, and only reflect what they knew at the time. He wanted the story to unfold for the reader the way it did for them.

Looking back now, he could say that this was the moment when they got their first inkling that something was wrong. At the time, though, it wasn't all that clear. Really, who knew that the first warning would come from a report by the Hyrule Treasury? Though, come to think of it, you could even say the story began further back, with that stranger Link ran into when he was returning from his visit with Daruk, the one eating lunch at Foothill Stable. Then Link chuckled to himself. You could tell he was an old-timer. He still called them stables, but to most people these days, it was the Foothill Service Area now.

But it did take some time for the pieces of the puzzle to come together. And that's how Link needed to tell the story. In the meantime, people got on with their lives, and he needed to write about those events too.

But enough thinking! He had best get on with writing before Mila complained he was taking too long again! He could hear his dear daughter's voice now.

"Dad, please, just keep on writing!" said Mila. "You refuse to use the Tab dictation rune, so you have to write it all down. Explain what happened in your own words, and what you thought at the time. My editors and I can clean it up for publication."

Yes, Mila had editors to help her now. Well, so be it, thought Link, as he began writing the chapter.

It was early morning at Hyrule Castle as Tila awoke to see her husband Link floating next to her, still sound asleep. She reached for her Tab at the side of the slumber pool and noticed the time. Then she turned back to Link.

"Wake up, sweetheart," said Tila. "Don't you have to work today?"

"Ummmm," said Link stretching out his arms, then opening his eyes. He looked over at Tila and smiled.

"No, I have today off," said Link. "Did I forget to tell you?"

"Obviously," said Tila. "And why are you off today?"

"Today is the monthly minister and ambassador meetings,' said Link. "Princess Zelda and her mother won't leave the Castle all day. The regular guards have everything well in hand."

"Wonderful!" said Tila as she reached out and touched his cheek. "Do you want to sleep some more? Or, as long as you're awake..."

"Yes, as long as I'm awake, that one," said Link as he reached for her, and they embraced then started kissing.

Meanwhile, at another part of the Castle, both Queen, and Princess Zelda were attending the monthly Ministers meeting, to be followed immediately after that by the monthly Ambassadors meeting. Princess Zelda had become an active meeting participant now. She needed to learn about the business of ruling Hyrule, but she also wanted to find ways to help her mother. Her mother had been shouldering this responsibility for over thirty years now and deserved some help.

"We are making excellent progress extending high-speed transportation on both land and water to all major areas of Hyrule, Your Majesty," said the Transportation Minister, Morton. "The major villages are already well-served except for Goron City. The Eldin Region remains an engineering challenge because of the harsh climate there and the unstable geologic conditions caused by the active volcano. Our engineers are suggesting it may be wiser to limit the ground transportation from there and wait until air transport is perfected."