Lore:The Improved Emperor's Guide to Tamriel/Cyrodiil

''Note: Flaccus Terentius' notes appear in bracketed italics. Inserts appear in separate boxes. Captions for unreleased images are denoted by  .''
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Near Bravil
 
Ah, the lovely  , bucolic background of my long-lost youth. I could happily have spent my life painting landscapes of the region south of  , and indeed, I tried to - but it turned out there was little market for pleasant landscape paintings in the vulgar, down-at-heel port town of  . The best-paying work I could get there was painting suggestive watercolors for the local bawdy house, labor that was beneath me and not to my taste. So, like many another young artist, I packed up my art supplies and went off to find my fortune in the  , where my genius was sure to be recognized.

So far, however, my genius has been sadly overlooked, and I have barely been able to scrape by painting portraits of miserly merchants and minor nobles. The only one who truly appreciated me is my beloved  . It is my boundless determination to win her hand that is sending me on this geographical odyssey...

center|thumb|600px|[The   Valley - I added the windmill. (I like windmills.)]
File:ON-concept-17.jpg|center|thumb|600px|''[Old Vergil's Mill, with Bravil in the background. I never did manage to sell this one.]''

Imperial City
A Meeting with The Chancellor

It was high noon in the Imperial City when I entered the base of the  . A pair of Knight Paladins uncrossed their swords and allowed me to pass. Hmph - I had expected a little more fanfare. Where were my trumpeters? But the   Chambers were empty, save for Chancellor   and his attendants. Tharn had been old when I'd met him as a child, and Tharn seemed no more wizened now. There were whispers about Tharn's pacts with   and dark magic to extend his lifespan, but these were libelous and unfair; the man was clearly of fine breeding and intellect. I shall strike this comment from my journal. My meeting with the most powerful man in Cyrodiil was about to begin.

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I showed the chancellor my portrait of him, resplendent in his   armor. My chest puffed out a little when he called my work "Reasonably adept." We talked about my move to the Imperial City after my family's fortunes dwindled, my life as a portrait painter, my love for Honoria Lucasta (may she walk in  's glow), and my lack of steady income, which displeases her father - Councilor   - greatly.

"My friend Pheumus has a role suited to your bookish talents," Tharn stated. "You are to be Curator of Art in The  . Our current curator, Dame Agrippina Gallus, is almost, but not quite, ready to retire. So, in the meantime..." Tharn beckoned an assistant forward, who carried a heavy book.

"That is the Emperor's Guide to Tamriel," I observed. "  had it prepared in  ."

"Most perceptive," Tharn replied, then tore a leaf from its binding and set the page alight with a snap of his fingers. "But it is badly outdated. You are to create a revised, concise, and illustrated update of this guide for the Imperial Library. Use your own observations for this book's entries to aid you. You are up to the task, as you not?"

I nodded eagerly, without realizing the lie I'd perpetrated.

"Good. I hereby appoint you as Envoy-Scholar to the  . Do not fail,  . Councilor Lucasta will speak of wedding rituals with his daughter upon your return."

Abnur Tharn's assistant ushered me from the great chamber. As I departed, I thought I saw a dark shadow pass behind the perimeter columns. Not a good portent, but I was too flustered to worry. The forward-thinking chancellor had already sent letters of credit to banks across Tamriel. A   Trading Company ship was departing for   the next morn.

I decided I would create a scrapbook of my notes, sketches, and suitable excerpts from the previous Imperial Guide as a rough draft for my new Great Work. I was determined to bring honor and prosperity back to the family Terentius.