Sleep in? Sleep in.
After 30 minutes of trying to fall back asleep, I got up and stretched. Putting on pants before Vana saw me would possibly be a first. I walked outside and started climbing a tree near the inn. The sun crested over the east and rimmed the world in a series of pinks, oranges, purples, and blues. I could sense the green essence trying to tint the air with my spirit but the null essence felt like it was devouring the green as it tried to make itself known.
Still, the crisp air and gentle breeze were nice. And the tree lacking sap – something I hadn’t checked prior to my climb – was a welcome reprieve from my recent pattern – habit – of getting my clothes extremely dirty.
I walked back inside to a yawning Vana, this time wearing a heavy blouse. She looked at me and my broad smile. “And just what are you smiling at Mr. Lecherous? On a serious note, did you convince Tilda to swing by to try out the water?”
“Ha, no. But I was hoping for some breakfast. I’ll splurge a little so go for something a bit more out of the norm. And while I would love to order lunch, my storage ring has a busted enchantment that makes things go bad faster rather than preserving them so maybe not… I only had a bite of the sandwich yesterday and it was delicious but I’m still not going to risk it, ha.”
“Let me see that thing.” She grabbed my hand and looked at it closely. “Yup, it’s a ring.” With that, she turned around and headed into the kitchen.
Chuckling, I took a seat – thankfully one that was not sticky as a few still looked it – and pulled up my Darko Drills. I tried to speak to Vana when she came over with a small loaf of bread and some cheese. “To tide you over while I whip something up special.”
“I am the thanking goose for much stomach good. Much apple.” At least that’s about as close as my AAI could translate.
“Boy, there’s something wrong with you. You’re lucky you’re cute. And apparently a savior or something? Anyway, you is be kept good up work.” I thought her imitation was pretty harsh but when I listened back to my recording, it was far too kind.
Lot of work to do still. Never was afraid of a little hard work. Well, maybe in the last few years…
I sent an AAI message to Risto to see if he’d be up for training and waited for my sumptuous spread of poached eggs, crispy bacon, garlic potatoes, something close to hashbrowns but not potatoes, a wonderful sauce that reminded me of hollandaise, and a small steak of some kind.
It was a perfect combination with a breakfast ale.
I thanked Vana and decided to explore the town a bit. The map I downloaded to my AAI was useful and I checked it occasionally but decided not to use navigation. While I still had a lot of my Planet Web access remaining, there was no need to waste it when I was wandering.
There was a gorgeous scent on the air, and even though I had just eaten breakfast, I did a Toucan Sam and followed my nose. Said nose landed me in front of a bakery just as it was opening up. A young man in a dust coat, apron, and jaunty hat smiled as he flipped the sign to open.
“Are you interested in the best bread this side of Zalano?” I winced slightly at the name. Misinterpreting, he pivoted, “Or we have some lovely apple tarts. A strawberry and potato-based pastry? Please, do come inside, I will even throw the first on the house.”
While I certainly didn’t need it, I wanted it. And today was a day to splurge a little. Stay within budget!
I did not stay within budget.
I walked out with over a dozen different treats in two bags, one of which I quickly stored in my ring. There was almost zero chance the decay function on the ring would even matter as I started inhaling the contents of the other bag.
Green essence-based sugar is WAY better. Like, it doesn’t even compare. Even to brown sugar. This could be bad.
I tried a cream-filled pastry and somehow managed to get about half the delicious filling onto my shirt. Checking to see if anyone was looking, I scooped it off and into my mouth.
“You should know that someone is always watching,” a familiar voice came from my right. Risto emerged from around a corner. “I was planning to jump out and surprise you. But I swear, I will keep your secret if you share a few of those.”
I think I need to focus essence into perception…
Looking at the remaining four pastries in the bag, he started high. “Three.”
“None.”
“Four.”
“Okay, you can have one but I get to pick it.”
“Three and you can pick them all or two and I pick one and you pick the other.”
Knowing the last offer was a good deal in exchange for my dignity, I nodded. He grabbed the strawberry shortcake and I gave him a plain croissant. Then I popped the other bag out of my storage and swapped the remaining two in.
He laughed loud enough to get someone to poke their head out a window to yell at him.
“Ha, you win this round. I saw you wanted to do some training so I was swinging by the inn to grab you. Did you want to do that now?”
“Let me drop off a few pastries for Tilda since she’s around the corner and I’ll meet you there?”
***
As I approached the school, I was shocked how different it looked when it was essentially abandoned. Seeing I didn’t have a bag in my hand, he winced. “She took them all?”
“And I had to buy this silver hairpin. I mean, it’s pretty but what do I need a hairpin for?” I shrugged dramatically.
“I mean, isn’t Vana mad about last night? I heard about it through the grapevine. And yeah that hairstyle is atrocious. I can’t believe that was chosen. I do know a barber who might be able to fix it – or at least shave it off. Want their contact details?”
“Yeah, that would actually be nice, please do. Anyway, I am ready, so let’s train.”
“So you are down to do the wolf rift tomorrow, right? That’s great because I poked at the Councilor Asani – yes I know her, you aren’t the only big deal. Her kid loved me when she was here – and I asked for the budget to buy the AAI recordings of the rift that are available. Because the rift’s closer to Struva, we don’t have as many recordings in town that I could strong-arm people into giving up for free. And the guilds in town are jerks. Anyway, I was putting together a training program while you chatted with Tilda. I’ll send the videos your way too.”
“Wow, thanks. So where do we begin?” And I was immediately bonked on the head with a foam sword.
“Always be ready.”
I kicked him in the shin. “Constant vigilance!” I roared to his pained amusement.
We settled into a training routine that was focused on generalized tactics and reviewing the rift mechanics and enemies. My two trainers focused on trying to simulate the enemies, both through my AAI and with Risto pretending to be a wolf, drawing some odd looks from passerby.
Previously, the rift had been a forest in late fall, vibrant leaves of every color I could imagine with shades from white to black across greens, reds, oranges, browns, blues, purples. The riotous color was distracting momentarily but it was still relatively easy to see the large lupines as the trees were sparsely spaced and the trunks, while towering, weren’t that thick.
More recently, with the null essence invading what was previously almost exclusively a green affinity rift, everything had started to change. The color in the leaves and even the tree trunks was more and more muted with every delve based on the date of the recording. The wolves themselves seemed to get leaner but far more savage, taking more wild swings and not using defensive or pack tactics, simply rushing at delvers in fury.
In the most recent three delves, there was a mist that made seeing more than a couple hundred feet difficult, similar to the core ignition rift.
As we reset the scenario, Risto said, “I couldn’t get video from the current fuller null saturation as Struva is struggling to find teams to actually delve it. Still, it’s not too close to breaking so it should be relatively easy.”
“Why do you think it will be easy? Wolves are hard to deal with given they have 3 attack weapons and the added ability to pounce. Maybe charge too. Plus, these look almost maddened. Add in the mist and I am seeing a lot of the ways it can go wrong.”
“Look at the packet more. It’s a low Tier 1 and the wolves really don’t hit that hard. Plus, the shift in affinity has actually made them easier to beat one-on-one and they rarely attack in groups unless your team is dumb enough to attract more than one at once.”
Seeing my non-plussed look, he added, “And you’ll have an excellent team. Not sure which but they are sending a peak Tier 1 team to run some allocation bracelet testing. I know Ratmir wanted to go but he’s got some trauma related to delving.” As I thought more and reviewed the packet, I received a solid smack to the head for my inattention. Laughing – the foam swords Risto was using were from the school so they were much lighter than what he usually used for 1:1 training – I called for a break.
I pulled another bag of pastries from my ring that I had purchased on the way back and we enjoyed them while just watching people walk around the area. It was a more residential area so a lot of children were about, many greeting Risto. There seemed to be an unspoken rule to not interrupt while training but when he had no weapon in his hands, the kids would rush up to tell small anecdotes as if they were the most entertaining and harrowing tales of all time. And Risto played along quite well.
You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.
I could never do that. I’ve always been bad with kids.
We whiled away a few more hours and then Risto and I headed over towards Gabor and Tiesa’s house to see if her potato dumplings were ready.
***
“You mangy mongrel, get your disgusting paws away from there!” Tiesa was wielding her spider strainer truly effectively in fending off Risto from getting at the first batch of dumplings.
She had made the dough – is it dough? Not sure what to call it… – earlier in the day and had planned to make some and take them to Jasna. Instead, Risto and I were simply camping at her table and trying to sneak them from under her watchful eye. She let me get away with it but not Risto.
“With Gabor busy with that unexpected break, what are you up to for the day? I think Terry wanted to do some exploring if you’re up for it. Plus, it’s on him!”
“Hey, I said no such thing. Just for that, Tiesa, your day is on me but this cretin can pay for himself!”
Risto really was used to being around kids as his offended face was about ten times as exaggerated as it needed to be but we continued to joke and eat for about an hour before Jasna showed up.
“I heard you are the reason I am not already enjoying the company of my sworn sister and her wonderful cooking. Explain.” She put her hands on her hips and I couldn’t tell if she was actually upset or not. I used the most tried and tested response I could imagine.
“It’s his fault!” Both Risto and I twinned pointing at each other. Despite it sounding nothing alike because I was using English, I still called jinx. And then had to explain jinx. For some reason, Jasna decided to claim the beverage I won and I let it go.
It’s nice to just take a minute to breathe. Maybe this world isn’t all that bad. And I have an opportunity to make a real impact instead of slightly improving processes to improve operating margins by a few basis points without ever getting the credit. But man do I miss reading…
The four of us headed over to the town hall and we spent some time shopping around. There was a compass that interfaced with my AAI to give me a lot of readings that would be extremely helpful in a delve but it was 1.5 gold and that was just too rich for me.
[Incoming Message from Risto Lazarov: You are supposed to get a good cut of the reward for the delve tomorrow. I think you’ll be able to grab one in no time. If this one gets sold, I’ll ping my merchant friends to make sure we can grab one.]
At my raised eyebrow, I got another message.
[Incoming Message from Risto Lazarov: We shouldn’t be discussing anything about you and delving in the open. Only a few people know and it’s best to keep it that way.]
I nodded and then Jasna gave us a funny look. “It better not be about something you aren’t willing to say in front of us. Tee-Tee here will give you a good walloping and I’ll do much worse.”
I really couldn’t interpret if she was kidding. But Tiesa just laughed and put her hands on Jasna’s shoulders. “Oh settle down there little sis, I think I know what it was about and it wasn’t those amazing new pants you’re wearing, well-fitting though they may be.”
At Tiesa’s words, I reflexively looked at her pants. Jasna turned this way and that, trying to see her own butt in her pants then realized the futility. She did catch my eye doing the same thing and nodded. “I will introduce you to my tailor. Those trousers you wear are unflattering and look uncomfortable.” She sent me a store name and an AAI contact ID.
I absolutely don’t get her.
Confusing behavior aside, it was a wonderful afternoon. The three of them showed me their favorite places in the city.
“Before we go anywhere, I am absolutely jonesing – sorry, I am really in need of some entertainment, specifically books. Either ones I can read on my tablet or, potentially preferably, actual physical books. Though I might ask one of you to hold onto them after I read them given my weird-ass ring.”
At an eyebrow from Tiesa, I explained, “They screwed up the enchantment. It actually accelerates decomposition or decay or whatever you would call the opposite of preservation. So I don’t want to do that to books. That would be a crime!”
“There is no crime for damaging or destruction of books. At least not in Velez and I am not aware of said law in any of the surrounding cities.”
Tiesa leaned in to Jasna’s ear and whispered something.
“Oh, I see. That was a good joke.” Jasna’s face hadn’t changed a bit but Tiesa looked at her fondly.
They ushered me inside and I found the proprietor, a rather handsome man that was about a head shorter than me but with a jovial smile and a carefree air about him.
“Welcome to Perica’s Periodicals, Paperbacks, Pulps, and Primers! How can I be of service?” He had a deep, rich voice that hinted it had many exciting stories to relay.
“Yes, so I am new in… em, let’s say town. I am very interested in purchasing some books but I really don’t know where to start. And do you sell only physical copies or…”
“Bleh, yes we sell for the tablet. Or even worse, the AAI. Why not just have someone read the book to you?”
“Actually, where I’m from, that’s a big thing. It lets you go along with your mundane tasks and continue with the story. And some narrators almost become your daily companion. They are a nice supplement to reading yourself!” I was a bit too excited about audiobooks but they really were magic to me.
“Hm, well if you procure a few for me, I would be willing to see. Or I guess willing to hear, ho, ho!” He laughed merrily at his bad joke. “Such is the way of ever improving your knowledge, even sampling new ways to acquire it.” He looked skeptical but we quickly got back on track.
We discussed their selection across fiction and non-fiction. There wasn’t really a ‘fantasy’ genre since they were essentially living it but it led to simply historical or contemporary ‘action fiction’ mostly. There was some sci-fi but it sounded a bit too body horror type for me – especially with what Barry had done to me. I walked out with three physical books – one on local history and two essentially picture books for learning more of the language – and a compendium of about 100 that were out of this world’s version of copyright for my tablet/AAI.
We continued the tour after I spent a bit too much on a favorite hobby.
“Over there is the music hall. They mostly play boring music but sometimes they host something more exciting. I’ll send you some details later.” Risto started humming a song and Tiesa joined. Jasna started humming too but it was completely different than the song the other two were performing. I threw Risto a quick glance and he just shrugged.
“Ah, up here on the right, this is the best place in town. The amphitheater is where we have plays but most importantly, we have our fighting tournaments. It has enchantments to prevent serious harm but it’s still really exciting. We’ll have to go! Maybe I can train you up to actually participate yourself. Maybe the five of us team up for the group bouts too?” Risto was bobbing up and down like a school child.
“No.” That was all Tiesa said. Not even harshly but with a finality that brooked no argument.
That seemed to take some wind from Risto’s sails but he bounced back quickly.
“They have amazing snacks too. I should see if Vana can make some!”
“Uh, so do they have betting on the tournaments?” I asked, hoping the answer was no. I don’t need to get back to that sodus again.
“Of course. There are really fun bets too, not just on the results but time to victory and even amount of blood spilled. It’s simulated blood – except when they turn off some of the enchantments – but it makes really cool patterns when it flies off the contestants! I can’t wait to take you!”
Jasna nodded to Risto. “Yes, I too will take you. I can explain what are good and bad moves so you can improve. I believe Gabor would be sad if you were injured or died and that would make Tiesa sad which would make me sad.”
Tiesa gave her a hug and around her back mouthed something to me. I shrugged – my AAI couldn’t translate mouth movements.
I really need to learn the language.
[Incoming Message from Tiesa Gogol: She can be a little awkward but I’m sure she’d be sad if you died as well. At least I think…]
I started laughing out loud and Tiesa gave me a dirty scowl. “I just thought of a funny story from my world. And sorry, the context is convoluted so I’ll save you from a boring explanation.”
Consultant survival tip #262: Sometimes, just enjoy the laugh for yourself. You don’t need to entertain everyone and people understand everyone has their inside jokes and references. Try not to seem like it’s at their expense and they’ll just shrug it off.
“I would like to hear the explanation.” Jasna looked me dead in the eyes. Not a challenge, not a demand, just a statement of fact.
“Jasna, let’s get you home instead. You can ask Terry about his home world another time, okay?” As she started to usher the woman away, Tiesa threw a look I couldn’t interpret back at me.
“Want to explain?” At my head shake, Risto simply put his hand on my shoulder. “Good, then treat me to some dinner at Vana’s. I haven’t had a good meal there in a while.”
“Tilda’s coming. Will you behave?”
“Will she?!” As we both shouted “No!”, we burst into laughter and walked through the city, just talking about nothing and enjoying a quiet and peaceful day.
***
“Well, I probably know why you acquired it but it is lovely and I appreciate it. Did you not try bribing her with cheeses?” Vana took the proffered hairpin and clipped it on. It looked rather fetching in her wavy brown locks and brought out a gleam in her hazel eyes.
“I tried pastries. She took a fair bit of them and it still wasn’t enough! And they were good!” I tried for sympathy and got none from both Vana and Risto.
“Next time, you send messages to everyone you know. That is not a woman to be standing up for a dinner date. Many would nearly kill to take her out and she is as likely to kill anyone who is supposed to and doesn’t.” She let out a hearty laugh and started slapping her hand against the counter.
Rolling my eyes, I turned and sat down at a table. Risto joined me and we had an ale and listened to the bard quietly strumming in the corner on a stringed instrument. We knew it would liven up again once Tilda arrived and just enjoyed the quiet before the storm.
And storm it was.
Tilda bristled with fake outrage as soon as she spotted us. “YOU! YOU DARE STAND UP THE MAGINIFICENT TILDA!?” The ten other people in the common room turned to stare and she looked like an angry cat, its fur bristling as it expressed its immense displeasure.
Then she started cackling. “You should see your faces! Oh, so cute. Are you afraid of the big bad wolf?” At Risto’s wince, she raised an eyebrow.
“Just unfortunate phrasing as Terry is delving a wolf rift tomorrow. It’s not a big deal. Sit, sit. I think Vana said she has some stronger stuff. I want to hear your singing again. I heard you learned one recently about the old spry
“After last night, I am taking it easy. Just three ales and a gentlemanly escort to my bed again.” She gave an exaggerated wink. “Yes, I remember last night. Maybe tonight, I’ll carry you to your bed?”
Risto looked scandalized.
“Nothing happened. Where I’m from, there’s something called consent and it’s pretty important. Someone who is—”
“Let me guess, he is going on about how he’s such a chivalrous person.” Turning to me she said, “You are oh so caring and wonderful. Blah, blah, blah, get me my ale and leg of lamb to start servant boy.”
Tilda gave me a challenging look so I simply looked her back in the eye and said, “Well, if you were a functional member of society and had an AAI… Sodus, she can’t understand me can she?”
Risto burst out laughing as I pulled my tablet from my ring and held it by my face. “Uh, I was trying to make fun of you because I sent Vana your order while looking at you. But of course—OWWW!” I was interrupted by a wooden ladle colliding with the back of my head.
I decided not to turn in order to delay my fate as long as possible. That earned me another, though much lighter, tap.
When I turned, Vana somehow had both hands on her hips and the ladle still held out in front of her. “I am a person who runs a fine establishment not some order taker bot. My customers order with their mouths, not their chips. Don’t be a
Was that dipshit or jackass? Hmm…
“I am sorry Oh Mistress Vana, Most Wonderful and Lovely Proprietor, Purveyor of Delectable Delights. Whatever can I do to earn your forgiveness?” She actually blushed, which surprised me.
“You could invite me to sit down and have a meal and a wonderful conversation. Una just showed up and will be taking over serving for the night. I needed one off after this lout kicked up a storm last night.” She jerked her thumb at Tilda who only beamed with pride.
Deciding to ham it up, I got up and pulled out a chair for Vana who looked pleased as punch at the treatment. Tilda gave me an offended look and harrumphed but could only stay grumpy for a short while.
All three helped me somewhat with my language learning lesson with Tilda – though Vana seemed to like trying to make me say filthy things. I apparently propositioned her and Tilda in about 15 different ways but I didn’t mind. I had the school and my videos for vocabulary and grammar, it was just fun to improve my pronunciation and see what the translation said I actually said. Despite the ale, my accuracy improved as the common room filled up.
We enjoyed a nice and tasty meal of roast duck, a nice vegetable stew, something resembling risotto, and a sweet and savory pie to finish it off. Because I had to be off early the next morning we only stayed for a bit past the food and Risto and I walked Tilda home before I returned. Vana had drawn me another bath and there was a small hat next to the bath: ‘To cover up that monstrosity of a haircut. May Your Delve Be Safe and Prosperous. Good luck tomorrow in your delve. With a little love and a lot of exasperation, Vana, Most Wonderful and Lovely Proprietor, Purveyor of Delectable Delights.
I returned to my room and watched a few of the delves again sped up except the fighting parts. It seemed like I was as prepared as I could be so I decided to look out my window at the stars for a while, meditate, read through my picture books with my AAI off, and then head off to bed. My dreams were mild and pleasant as I fell asleep as soon as my head hit the pillow.
***
Notes App
End of Day 5
Only change, in both short-term and long-term goals: Have more days like today