"So, why were you so excited for us to be Doppelgangers, anyway?" Andrew asked.
Ver'varia raised an eyebrow at him. "For the reward, of course. I'm this close to being a cultivator! If I get even the lowest level enhancement potion, I'll be there, and then-" She cut off with a twisted expression. "Well, let's just say a lot of things would change for the better."
"Wait, you're an omega-tier?" Greg asked. "Then why are your buddies over there getting all protective and shit?"
Ver'varia sighed. "My ability has absolutely zero combat utility. All I can do is slow my perception of time, giving me time to think through everything I do. The most it can do in combat is give me time to appreciate the sword sliding into my gut."
"That doesn't sound completely useless… it'd let you react perfectly to whatever your opponent was doing, right?" Andrew offered.
Ver'varia rolled her eyes. "Yes, of course, but no matter how perfectly I fight, a fireball from a true omega-tier will still incinerate me in seconds. Seconds which I can only stretch into an eternity of pain."
"Man… you're almost as much of a downer as he is!" Greg snorted. "'Oh, woe is me, I can't do anything with my ability! Wah!'" Greg mimicked, before letting out another snort. "Seriously, why focus on what you can't do? You make amazing weapons! Be proud of that!"
Ver'varia flushed. "I am proud of that, but it does mean I don't wish I could do more! Complacency is the enemy of ambition!"
"Yes, complacency will weigh you down, but I'm not talking about complacency." Greg shook his head. "Complacency is laziness, not doing more because you don't want to, not because you can't. However, being happy with what you have after you've done everything you can isn't complacency, it's contentment. Look at your life and ask if there is anything more you could reasonably be doing to improve yourself. If the answer is yes, go do it. If the answer is no, then shut the fuck up and be happy, cause you're the best you can be at the moment! Being miserable over all the things you can't do will only make you miserable. Case in point, And… this guy!" He waved a hand at Andrew.
Andrew pinched the bridge of his nose. "For the forty millionth time, it's And'rewal!"
"Feh, I'm lucky to remember my own name. I ain't got no space for yours too." Greg waved dismissively.
"Is that complacency or contentment?" Ver'varia asked with a slight smirk.
Greg paused. "Little column A, little column B? I suppose if I really worked at it, I could dedicate people's names to memory, but I personally believe my time is best spent on other things, so I would say it's contentment for me. However, I suppose many others would prefer it if I did take more time to remember their names… so they would see it as complacency. But I don't care to put in a bunch of extra effort for people who I don't even know the names of, so I'm content with it." Greg finished with a smirk.
Ver'varia snorted. "And'rewal is right. You are utterly ridiculous."
"Isn't he?" Andrew shook his head.
The conversation paused as the server finally came by. "What can I get you all?" She asked.
"Right, food." Greg muttered, picking up the menu and freezing at the incomprehensible gibberish written on it. "Ah… what would you recommend?" He coughed, turning to the server.
"Well, the house salad is always good, but we recently got a shipment of fresh salmon and it is to die for. A bit expensive, but I'd say it's worth it." The server replied.
Greg cocked his head. He'd never had salmon before, but… "Sure, why not. I'll take the salmon." Better than the salad or trying to guess what might be on the menu.
"I'll take the salad." Andrew added.
"I'll also have the salad." Ver'varia ordered. "And some tea."
The server nodded, taking the menus back. "Alright, I'll have everything out shortly."
"So… how long have you two been working together?" Ver'varia asked.
"Four years? I think?" Andrew replied, hesitantly throwing out a random number.
Ver'varia turned to raise an eyebrow at Greg. "And you still can't remember his name?"
"I usually remember it, it's just every now and then it escapes me." Greg shrugged.
"To make it worse, we're cousins." Andrew grumbled.
"Not close cousins." Greg waved dismissively.
"Still though." Andrew sighed.
"It is pretty ridiculous." Ver'varia smirked.
"Well, as you've said, I'm a ridiculous guy." Greg chuckled.
"So, where are you both from?" Ver'varia asked next.
"Kal'nifta." Andrew replied, since it was the only other town he could name off the top of his head.
Ver'varia frowned. "So close? Aren't you traveling merchants?"
"We're just starting out." Andrew coughed. "We'd finally built up the funds for a wagon and a good supply of goods and then…" He let out a sigh. "Now we have to start all over."
"I'm thinking our mistake was going too big." Greg commented. "We went all in on the wagon and goods, but nothing to defend it all! What we should have done was start small, just fill our packs with goods and go. Small risk, small reward, but consistent. Maybe get lucky and pick up some of the rarer resources, Ver- Ver told us about. Slow growth until we can afford the wagon and some guards to protect it."
Andrew nodded slowly. "Not a bad idea… we'll have to run it by the others."
"And my name is Ver'varia." Ver'varia added.
"I'm sure it is." Greg grinned.
Ver'varia scoffed. "So, how many of you are there? And are all of you related?"
"Four, and yeah, we're all vaguely related." Andrew nodded. "One of those things where we all wanted to make something of ourselves and there was just enough connection for us to feel comfortable going into business together."
"I see… well, I hope it works out for you." Ver'varia commented.
Andrew sighed. "Me too."
The three of them continued to make light conversation until their food arrived, the conversation turning towards crafting as Greg leveraged his knowledge from System World to draw Ver'varia in, and away from any more questions about their past. They then focused on finishing their food, before excusing themselves and heading back to the inn. Ver'varia watched them go with a thoughtful expression, tapping her finger on the table. Such interesting gentlemen. It was amazing how much you could notice when your perception slowed down enough. The slightest twitch, or hitch in someone's voice. And while she was sure they weren't Doppelgangers… they definitely weren't Elves.
*
"Man, we are getting so good at lying!" Greg commented as they got back to their suite.
Victoria's expression twisted, glancing up from the shirt she was sewing. "Do I want to know?"
Andrew sighed. "We almost got caught by the local weaponsmith, because Greg can't seem to remember he's supposed to be a freaking mid-tier. And I lied us out of it! You were scrambling until I jumped in!"
"Well I played along like a boss." Greg retorted. "Best supporting actor, whatever year it is around here."
Andrew rolled his eyes. "Yeah, good for you. You didn't make the situation you caused any worse."
"But we're good though, right?" Victoria interjected. "We don't have to disappear into the night and create whole new identities, do we?"
"No, we're good." Andrew nodded. "But you should know that we've been working together for four years, we're from Kal'nifta, and we're all cousins."
"Got it." Victoria muttered. "Well, other than that, how did you guys do?"
"Pretty good." Greg shrugged. "We managed to get a few lists of resources to look out for. Mostly for crafting, but I think that should be our focus anyway. Showing up with a wagon full of goods without any guards would be suspicious, but a few packs full of high value resources not so much."
Victoria paused, considering the suggestion for a moment. "That makes sense, I suppose… Did you guys figure out anything about the local politics?"
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"Not really." Andrew shook his head.
"Oh! We learned that there's a reward for turning in Doppelgangers! Something called an enhancement potion that helps people become cultivators. We should look into that." Greg commented.
"How? By turning in Doppelgangers?" Andrew asked, raising an eyebrow at him.
"I was talking more about the enhancement potion part, but sure why not?" Greg shrugged. "It'd have to wait until Chris got here, but we could totally turn someone in, then pull them out the moment we're gone."
"Or use them to figure out where they're keeping all these captured Doppelgangers and rescue them." Victoria offered.
"Also a good plan." Greg agreed.
"Alright, so, for now we'll focus on gathering the resources on the lists you guys got, waiting for Chris to show up, then we'll move on to the next town. Agreed?" Victoria outlined their plan, looking between the two of them.
"Sounds good to me." Greg agreed.
"Yeah. We should probably head out of town tomorrow to see what we can find." Andrew nodded.
"We should probably get some weapons first…" Greg muttered.
Andrew frowned at him. "Do you really want to risk messing things up with Ver'varia again?"
Greg shrugged. "Hey, after all that, I'm pretty sure she's the person who's least suspicious of us in this town."
*
"Welcome- oh, it's you two again." Ver'varia cut off as Andrew, Greg, and Victoria walked into her shop once again. "And you brought a friend! One of your cousins?"
"Yeah, this is Vic'torial." Andrew introduced her. "Vic'torial, this is our potential business partner Ver'varia."
"Nice to meet you." Victoria smiled, giving Ver'varia a nod.
"And you." Ver'varia smiled back. "And what brings you all back to my little shop this morning?"
"Oh, we wanted to see about getting a cake." Greg smirked. "Why do you think we came to a weaponsmith?"
"I suppose it was a foolish question." Ver'varia muttered with a smirk of her own. "The real question is whether you're buying off the wall, or looking to commission something custom made."
"Off the wall for now." Greg sighed. "Not exactly in a position to afford custom work at the moment."
"True, but if you run into any trouble, a good weapon could be the difference between life and death." Ver'varia retorted.
"And living on the streets because we can't afford to stay at our inn anymore would do the same." Victoria interjected. "We'll stick to the wall for now."
"Suit yourselves." Ver'varia shrugged. Victoria, of course, picked out two decent daggers, while Greg picked out a one-handed hammer, and Andrew went for a spear. The weapons ate into a good chunk of their funds, but if they were heading out of town, it'd be suspicious if they didn't bring any weapons. "Before you go, you should at least test your abilities so you know what resources to look out for for your custom weapons when you do get them." Ver'varia added before they left, pulling out a tray of what looked like handles made of various materials.
"I- suppose we could do that." Victoria muttered.
Ver'varia smiled. "Great! Just send your ability energy through these. See which one transfers it best." The three of them took the handles and did so, Ver'varia noting down the results as they went. "Okay, I already have most of the materials I'll need, but you should be on the lookout for these while you're out there." She commented, writing a few words on a slip of paper and handing it over.
"Thank you, we will." Victoria nodded back.
Ver'varia blinked, her smile going crooked. "You- think you can get everything on that list?"
"Yes?" Victoria replied hesitantly. She couldn't actually read the list, but she assumed Greg had scanned all the handles so he should be able to make all of it if necessary. She was honestly hoping they could skip town before going through with the order, since it'd just be a waste of money in her opinion.
Ver'varia grimaced, leaning over the counter. "You people can't even read Elvish, can you?" She hissed quietly.
Victoria froze while Greg and Andrew turned to grimace at each other. Maybe they weren't such good liars after all. "Why would you say that?" Victoria asked, narrowing her eyes at her.
"Because that paper says I know you aren't Elves." Ver'varia replied.
Andrew sighed in defeat. "How did you figure it out?"
Ver'varia shook her head. "We shouldn't talk here. You never know who might be listening." She paused, before turning and taking the Dragon sword off the wall. "Come on, let's go." She waved for them to follow her out of the shop, locking up behind them.
"Where are we going?" Greg asked, falling into step beside her.
"Out of town, to gather resources." Ver'varia replied. "You need someone experienced to help you spot them after all."
"Ah, of course." Greg nodded, chuckling slightly.
"We should probably grab your fourth member as well, shouldn't we?" Ver'varia suggested. "It would be best to have all of you for this."
"That won't be necessary." Victoria shook her head. "Kri'stophal is still recovering from his injuries."
Ver'varia grunted. "If you insist." The four of them made their way out the gates, Ver'varia waving and smiling at the guards as they passed. "I assume you know that anything happening to me will ruin whatever plans you have for this town?" She commented once they were a good distance from the gate.
Greg snorted. "I think you have no idea who you're dealing with, but don't worry, we aren't the types to kill someone just because they figured us out."
Ver'varia blinked at that. "That's… good."
"So, again, how did you find out?" Andrew asked.
Ver'varia glanced at him. "You have a few minor tells when you lie, and I had more than enough time to study you. You should have left lying to him. He gives away nothing." She gestured to Greg.
"Ha! Wasn't me!" Greg whooped, raising his hands in victory.
Ver'varia rolled her eyes. "Except for the fact that you were the one who made me suspicious enough to actually study you both."
Greg paused. "Right… Well, still, this is partially not my fault!"
"Congratulations." Victoria growled in a tone dripping with sarcasm. "Now how about you tell us why you're out here with us instead of turning us in for the reward?"
Ver'varia frowned. "What reward?"
Victoria blinked. "For- turning Doppelgangers in?"
"But… you aren't Doppelgangers. He said so and I would have known if he was lying." Ver'varia explained, gesturing to Andrew.
"But we're still clearly shapeshifters." Victoria commented. "I can't imagine you wouldn't get anything for turning us in."
Ver'varia cocked her head. "I suppose that's true… but I believe there's more value in working with you, rather than against you, for one simple reason. Your abilities."
Victoria raised an eyebrow. "Our abilities?"
"You have them. As in, you all have clearly manufactured abilities. All three are at exactly the same level of power, at the lowest end of mid-tier." Ver'varia elaborated, her eyes lighting up excitedly. "I assume they aren't your true abilities, which means you have some way of granting people extra abilities, something not even we are capable of! At the very least you're capable of controlling how much ability energy someone has, and that means you can almost certainly help me become a cultivator!"
"Well, she isn't entirely wrong." Greg chuckled. "But I suppose we can't fault her for not accounting for outliers."
Ver'varia frowned. "You- can't help me become a cultivator?"
"Oh, no we absolutely can." Greg replied. "There are just… certain costs involved."
"Not that anyone has ever turned us down…" Andrew muttered.
"When the other perk is freaking immortality, people tend not to say no." Victoria rolled her eyes.
"I honestly think people don't understand what a pain it is to deal with Chris." Andrew sighed.
"You know, if we get our hands on one of those enhancement potions, we could probably just make her one or a dozen." Greg commented. "No need for Chris to connect her to his world then."
"Who is Chris?" Ver'varia asked with a frown.
"He's our fourth member, but he's not here yet." Greg replied.
Ver'varia frowned. "I thought you said he was staying at the inn?"
"Oh, that's not him, that's me." Greg shrugged.
Ver'varia blinked, before turning to Andrew. "Is he lying?"
"No, he's not." Andrew sighed.
"How- how is that possible?" Ver'varia asked, looking between them with an increasingly nervous expression.
Greg chuckled as smoke began to billow out of him, turning into a swarm of fairies, all chuckling along with him, before turning back to smoke and flowing back into him. "As I said, you have no idea who you're dealing with."
Ver'varia stepped back with a gulp. "What- what was that?!?"
"A small sample of what I'm capable of." Greg bowed with a flourish, materializing a cape as he did, which then dissolved before turning into a sword. He then sent the sword floating over to her. "Look familiar?"
Ver'varia's eyes widened as she grabbed the sword. "This- this is my sword! How did you-"
Greg shrugged. "You let me touch it. Now I can have as many as I want." He materialized a few more to float around him. "I'm a master of matter. Anything I know, I can make."
"I understand that. One branch of the royal family has a similar ability. But how did you make it float?" Ver'varia frowned. "And how did you control those little versions of yourself?"
"Oh, right… Well, my smoke is me, and I am my smoke, so any body I make is just me, in a different body. As for the floating, well, my smoke can alter how gravity affects it." Greg explained.
"And the two of you?" Ver'varia asked.
"We're similar to him, but instead of matter, I'm energy, like ability energy, and he's aura." Victoria replied with a sigh. "And Chris is a living world."
Ver'varia blinked, focusing on Victoria. "So… you're the one who can help me become a cultivator."
"Yes, but it'd be a slow process my way." Victoria shook her head. "Like years slow. Better to wait for Chris, since he could manage it in a few days, and we'd still require you to connect to his world to do my thing."
"I see…" Ver'varia frowned. "What are people like you doing here?!?"
"Well, for one, we're waiting for Chris, and for another… Well, we're building up identities to infiltrate the Elven Kingdom. We have… issues with the Elf King-" Victoria began.
Ver'varia snorted. "Who doesn't? If he weren't the only one who could use the Blood Bow…" She shook her head.
Victoria raised an eyebrow at her. "Well, that's sort of why we're here. Chris… just so happens to be the Elf King's nephew, and no oath is keeping him from taking the bow."
Ver'varia's eyes widened. "Is- is that so?" That wasn't something she'd expected to hear. She slowed down her perception of time for a bit to fully process it, before letting out a sigh. "So… this is a rebellion."
"Eh?" Greg wiggled his hand. "Chris isn't a part of the Elven Kingdom, and neither are we, so I wouldn't call it rebelling. Of course, Chris does have a rightful claim to the throne, so it isn't exactly an invasion either… huh, what would you call this?"
"I think rebellion might actually be the best term." Andrew frowned.
"I think it depends on whether we use a foreign force or not." Victoria muttered. "If not, then rebellion. If so, then invasion."
"So what, we're Schrodinger's rebellion?" Greg raised an eyebrow.
"No, I think it'd more be that for her, if she joins us, it'd be a rebellion, while for us, it's an invasion." Victoria retorted. "Chris is somehow doing both."
"Does it really matter?" Ver'varia asked, frowning at them. "Either way, your purpose is to depose the Elf King, yes?"
Victoria paused, before nodding. "Yeah, that's what we're doing."
Ver'varia took a deep breath. "Then I want to help." She growled through gritted teeth. "The Elf King killed my father."