Chapter 11: Town Delays

Chapter 11: Town Delays

On the trip back Nathan and Byns kept their heads on a swivel. Everybody was exhausted, tired from traveling all night while on high alert. Not to mention the big fight. Farist and Zanwin were especially out of it, given their wounds. Magical healing left a person fatigued, and theyd both sustained life-threatening wounds.

Of course, so did I. But apparently thats another benefit of [Regeneration] over normal healing. I really need to firm up Insight for that Talent Development now that Im getting close. Itll be nice to have another unique Talent.

Sustained by a few more brief jolts from a yawning Stella and another bag of his favorite jerky, Nathan was doing fine. He could feel a sort of scratchy tiredness at the back of his eyes, and felt prone to hyperfocusing on irrelevant details. But nothing attacked them, and soon enough the sun was shining down through the broad branches overhanging the road.

It took them some hours more and a few carefully metered rests to reach Bridgeguard. When they got through the gates and into the town, Farist called over a guard. He gave some quick instructions to watch the far bank and wake them in a hurry if the legionaries showed up. Then they all trooped into the barracks and crashed.

They woke in staggered succession, with Nathan waking early to the sounds of Khachi attempting to sneakily store his armor in a bag of holding.

Nathan got up, waving away Khachis apologetic shrug. He went to relieve himself in the weird trough-bathroom that seemed ever present on Davrar, before returning to find Khachi sitting on a stool outside the barracks.

The big wolfman was pulling armor out of his bag, scrubbing and polishing it in the sunlight. After he finished each piece he held it up to the afternoon light to ensure it reflected the light well before storing it back in his bag. Nathan had seen him do this before, and knew that it was important that the armor was appropriately shiny for Khachis magic.

Nathan would have offered to help, but he knew Khachis armor was enchanted and he didnt want to wreck it. So instead he sat down across from the cleric, waiting in companionable silence. He had various topics bubbling in his mind, but wasnt sure how to raise any of them.

Before Nathan could settle on a topic, Khachi spoke. I propose we remain in Bridgeguard to allow the Forest Rangers to return to Gemore. Zanwin will be better off with more rapid healing, before he grows used to the absence of his arm. They have been out here some time. And we could do with a break from the politics of Gemore.

It didnt take a lot of consideration for Nathan to agree. That all sounds reasonable to me. Won't it be a problem that Stella cant cast [Message], to communicate with the Guild?

Khachi nodded. Yes. But I believe that it will help motivate her to learn, or prompt our quick replacement by the Guild. I think the Heirs are capable of standing off most threats when backed by the town guard. And we would be well served by setting our own pace.

Do we need a break? Nathan looked out over a town that was winding down for the evening. Dinners were being made and people were sitting outside and laughing in the cool afternoon air, living peacefully. He thought about staying here for a while. Protecting the town, instead of practicing at the Guild or going on missions. It would be nice to stay in a place and know that he had saved it from violence. Satisfying. Ñøv€l-B1n was the first platform to present this chapter.

The answer from Khachi was thoughtful. We will survive if we do not rest. But yesterday we faced two difficult foes in the span of a day. We are going from fight to fight. We level quickly, but without the chance to reflect on our performance, practice our new abilities and plan our future advancement. Our strength will grow brittle if we continue. We will make a mistake, and somebody may die.

He sighed, putting down a mirror-shining pauldron. Adventurers die. But it should be because they were unlucky, not because they took too little time to prepare.

Nathan nodded back. Yeah. That makes sense. Lets stay here for a bit. Use the time to train, and plan a bit. They sat in silence for a minute longer before Nathan formulated another question that had been bubbling in his mind. I asked some questions about [Message] the other day. I think theres a chance I can help Stella learn it, with the Insight that we never completed. The one that should give her light mana.

The one where we had to almost carry her home after she nearly killed herself? Khachi was looking down at the next piece of armor he was polishing, and while his tone was direct it wasn't accusatory.

Nathan shrugged. Yup, that one. I think I have a better way to explain it now. But her parents told her not to try it again for a while. And that theyd be the ones to help with it. Im not sure their Insights are compatible with mine, though.

Khachi nodded, once again taking some time to formulate his words before he spoke. We all wish to grow beyond what our parents have given us. Kia has told me that there will come a time when my path must diverge from hers, when I must stop relying on her Insights. To avoid being a lesser copy of her I will need to carve my own path with Insights I shape to my own purpose.

I always thought I would focus on defense and healing in contrast to her unstoppable holy sword. But I found myself swearing an Oath to attack the Endings, instead of merely defending Gemore. So, I do not know. He shook his head as if clearing a thought. But Stella I think she may have a more difficult path to breaking free of her parents influence. You have met them. They will hold onto their daughter and attempt to guide her beyond where they should. This is a reason to train here, away from the Guardian's influence.

Nathan looked up, surprised at Khachis words. You think I should go ahead with it? Even if Dalo and Kullal would disagree?

Khachi nodded. Yes. They have tried to give Stella a clear path to magical power. She has learned most of what Gemore knows of magic, following the path they paved. But you offer a path they had not considered and did not plan for. She should make her own decisions. Offer your path, and see if she decides to follow her parents footsteps a bit farther, or if she decides it is time to begin carving her own path. To become a [Mage of Science] or some such class.

Nathan nodded, a decision having been made. Ok. Ill ask. [Mage of Science] would be pretty cool, if a class like that exists. There were a few minutes of silence before they were joined by Sarah. She had started whittling a pair of small legionary figures from some branches shed picked up in the forest.

Nathan looked over to her. How you doin?

She shrugged and rolled her head around, keeping her eyes on the figurines. Alright. Learned the name of a man I killed, imagined his future, his dreams. Not filled with sadness. Just going to need a bit of time to stare into darkness and grow accustomed to the feeling of being a destroyer of life, of family.

The rest of the Adventurers woke up over the next hour, drawn by their noses when a villager approached with a tray loaded with fish that had been stuffed with sliced fruit and roasted. The fish were fresh and the fruit juicy, so it was a good breakfast? Dinner? They were going to need to fix their sleep schedules. Zanwin and Farist had to be woken up to eat, but they fell on the meal with relish.

Over the meal, Khachi proposed the plan, first asking if the other Heirs thought it was reasonable. Nathan backed him up, and Sarah, Stella and Aarl quickly agreed. Then he suggested the Forest Rangers make haste back to Gemore and they were more than happy to agree, already planning to leave the next morning.

Farist spoke, You Heirs hold the primary deterrent to Agmon, though I still dont understand what weapon is used, he gestured to Sarah. As long as you can handle River Cutters, Siegeboars and some Striped Wolves, then you can safeguard Bridgeguard as well as we can. Let me introduce you to the Village head.

The village head was a woman named Jadya Fuller. Nathan had been expecting an old leathery crone who looked like she chewed iron and spat nails, but Jadya was a middle-aged matronly woman who had flour in her nails and dusted across the backs of her hands. Farist introduced her and let her know that the Forest Rangers would be heading out in the morning while the Heirs stayed.

Jadya took the news with some concern, wishing the Forest Ranger well. She then turned to the Heirs and greeted them warmly, shaking each of their hands in a strong grip. She learned their names, pinched Aarls cheek and gave each of them a cold roll stuffed with a vegetable-and-meat paste filling.

Then she got down to business, laying out their responsibilities in a moderate accent. The truth is such that Bridgeguard is the only way ta get across the Drakefish. Its our lot to control who gets across, and get taxes on anybody carryin goods. Thats your real aim here, back us up when some merchant wants to skip the tax. And deal with it when any Agmon soldiers or Treeborn get blood in their eyes. She gestured across the river. You already done that part well enough.

Nathan nodded back. Yup. And my Insights are different from theirs. Its up to you to decide what path to follow, or if you want to learn both. But if we keep leveling up like we have been, then well need all the Insights we can get. And Ive thought of a different way to explain it.

The conversation ended there, and they proceeded to practice hard enough to test the limits of their leveling. Aarls blows hit harder - but Nathan was stronger and faster in return. All of his class skills carried more oomph now that he was higher level. His assorted rank-ups and Developments meant that the combat-oriented utility skills were also more impactful.

Nathan had already been practicing incorporating gymnastic-like movements into his fighting. It would have been ridiculous on Earth. But when you had skills that made you faster and made your tricks work every time? It suddenly wasnt as risky to grab a tree branch and pull yourself into a flip, then speed up your fall and plant your feet on your foes chest.

Because it turned out that [Slow Fall] was great with [Juggernaut's Inertia], [Sprinting], [Dodging footwork] and [Tumbling]. The ability to control the speed of his fall and nudge the direction was a game-changer. Nathan could launch himself into the air without worrying he was providing an easy target. He could spend stamina to pull himself to the ground or remain airborne longer than he should, throwing off any predictions of his movement.

In particular, Nathan was starting to notice something about his build that he hadnt been great at taking advantage of. His [Juggernauts Inertia] was an integral part of his class - it amplified the power of Nathans blows, and synergized with [Antimagic Momentum] to allow him to shatter incredibly powerful magic by simply having enough speed. But it didnt have that large of an effect when Nathan was standing in place.

The class skill really became significant when Nathan himself was moving quickly, with the momentum of his whole body. It made his charges unstoppable. He now had two skills to help him gain speed quickly - [Sprinting] and [Slow Fall] both enabled him to dramatically increase his speed. It was a little weird that he could use [Slow Fall] to fall faster, but it was High-Tier.

He had two skills to help him change directions quickly - [Dodging Footwork] and [Tumbling]. And they were both more effective when Nathan had speed to work with.

Remembering back to the last fight, a single legionary had given Nathan trouble when hed stood and fought, and Nathan hadn't even beaten him - he'd just run away. But the moment he picked up speed and stopped fighting normally, hed done much better, escaping an encirclement and nearly disarming two legionaries on his way out.

Even when hed gone in to rescue Zanwin - hed been able to dodge around one legionary and bowl over another almost entirely because hed had a run-up and hadnt ever abandoned the momentum.

In discussion with the other Heirs, Nathan confirmed his conclusions. He wanted to be able to stand and fight, but he needed to keep in mind that his primary fighting style was more suited to staying mobile and using his momentum to set up unstoppable attacks.

He was a [Spellbreaker Juggernaut], after all. The second part of that class was more than just window-dressing.

Status of Nathan Lark:

Permanent Talent 1: Magic Absorption 7

Permanent Talent 2: High-tier Regeneration 9

Talent 3: High-tier Slow Fall 4

Class: Spellbreaker Juggernaut level 65

Stamina: 523/750

Juggernaut's Wrath

Antimagic Momentum

Raging Thrill

Juggernaut's Inertia

Unarmored Resilience

Utility skills:

High-tier Focused Mind 9

High-tier Earnestness 3

Mid-tier Sprinting 6

High-tier Spellsense 4

Mid-tier Notice 9

Mid-tier Identify 7

Mid-tier Dodging Footwork 5

High-tier Enhanced Memory 4

Mid-tier Lecturing 2

Mid-tier Tumbling 2