Ethan was not mad; on the contrary - he was glad. Glad that, finally, there was some progress. An understanding of what he needed to do. And as it turned out, it was simple. Just as many years up to this point, he needed to train, train, and train some more. Practice makes perfect. Whatever it meant for the Aspects, Ethan thought and summoned some water from his storage, marveling yet again at his strange power.
Taking a sip, he noticed his stomach growl. “Huh? I guess I forgot to eat my lunch,” he said as he got up from where he had sprawled. Then, looking at the golem as it observed him, he said, “See you later, buddy. I will grab a bite and come right back.”
Ethan walked out of the training hall, flicking the lights off, not knowing how they were powered. Do not want to run out of energy before I squeeze everything I can from the things here, he thought, quickly walking back to the kitchen. Once there, he noticed that the sun had set and it was well past evening, the full moon casting its light through the windows.
“Damn, missed a whole day. How long was I there?” Ethan pondered, getting the magical pan and starting a fire on the kitchen stove. As he had run out of cooked fish, he proceeded to cook himself a quick dinner. Then, as the fish was frying, he went to the bedroom and started the fireplace to heat the place a bit.
“I guess I must find a room closer to the training hall now. Do not want to run back and forth all the time,” he said to himself. “Hmm, same with food. I will need a batch of fish and dump them in my storage. If they are the same type, they will stack all the same, cooked or uncooked.”
Ethan understood that to make some progress, he needed to get in the right mindset before training for days to come. And cooking each day meant it all the harder to achieve such a mindset. As if talking to myself is a good indicator of a proper mindset, he thought, at the implications of spending so many days alone without anyone to converse with.
As the fish was done by the end of Ethan’s chores, he sat down and ate silently, the surrounding tables and the whole room covered in the moonlight. It can be calm and beautiful here. Something I did not appreciate back home - always running toward something, he thought, reflecting on his life back on Earth.
Contemplation always made Ethan sleepy, and this time was not an exception. He quickly downed his fish and stuffed a clean plate in his inventory before bed. Then, lying down, he made stock of the action plan for the next day.
I will need to stock up on fried fish and some water. Then look for another room in the morning. Then training. I hope the golem will be waiting where I left it… he thought, slowly falling asleep.
- - -
Ethan woke up when the first rays of light hit his room. He did not bother bolting the door anymore and hiding away at night, fully aware that he was alone in the castle, besides the occasional zombie rat, whom he believed he was well equipped to handle by now.
Ethan jumped up from his bed and winced, his whole body aching from yesterday's training session, especially his back. “Uhh, reminds me of my first day with Mr.Yashida,” Ethan groaned and stretched. However, it did not help him much. Despite the pain in every part of his body, he felt more alive than he had since coming to this place.
Ethan quickly washed his face before breakfasting, sitting in the small yard, and observing the stable where he thought the horses were strapped. I hope they have horses here, not some weird animal of burden. It would be awkward if bears or something else pulled the carts, he thought and shuddered at the thought.
Ethan finished his morning plate and stuffed it in storage, getting up from where he had been sitting while enjoying the morning sun. The weather was incomparable to when he arrived at the castle, and he even started to doubt why the castle was called after the gloom. The day was just that perfect.
A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.
Walking back to the kitchen, a thought hit him, making him stop mid-step. I have not gone to the loo for weeks now. What the hell is up with that? he thought and stood for a second. Then he shook off the thought, relaxing, “Well, if magic could do one thing, that surely is it. No more toilet breaks!”
After his brief but relaxing breakfast, he returned to the kitchen and spent several hours cooking his fish stock. He was delighted to be proven right that the food was stacked in his storage space and would not take up additional space just like before. Once done, he stocked up on water, finding another pair of jugs he filled.
His immediate plans taken care of, he returned to the wing where the training hall was located and searched for an alternative room. Finally, on the floor above the hall, he found exactly what he was looking for - a spare room with an intact bed frame. The room was simple; its walls were made from smooth stone. However, it had a large fireplace with a bunch of logs next to it, which Ethan counted as a luxury given the rest of the castle he had explored.
The room was approximately five meters long and six meters wide, without any decorations, except for the bed and bedside cabinets. There even was a straw mattress that looked much more comfortable than the rags he had been sleeping on. No pillow, huh? Well, I cannot ask for everything, he clicked his tongue.
Ethan then walked up to the large window covered in wooden louvers and opened them up, allowing a refreshing breeze in. He was surprised to discover what lay before him.
A sea of green tree tops opened below, almost a hundred meters down where he stood, and stretched as far as his eyes could see. Wow, almost like an emerald sea. Is this the frontier? he marveled, mentally patting himself on the back for not going out in the forest, hoping for the best. The wild sea of greenery was just that vast.
He turned away and gave the room another glance. Once satisfied with his new room, Ethan returned to the training hall and flicked the lights on. He was startled for a second to discover the shadow golem standing where he had left it. It intently looked at him as Ethan walked to the captain’s table, flopping down and getting the journal out.
Looking at the golem, Ethan said, “Come on, Gloomy, you waited all night. Can I call you that? What are a few more minutes?” He waved the book toward the golem and said, “I will quickly read over what else your previous training partner had to say about this place and will get right back to you.”
Seeing no visible reaction from the golem, Ethan shrugged and made himself comfortable, opening the journal randomly toward the back. Observing the contents, he chuckled, “Seems I am on a lucky streak. The captain deemed to include some history on the place.” He continued to read the entry.
Gloomvault is as remote as it gets. Located at the very frontier of the Kingdom of Heresis, the place is not for the weak of the heart. Past the cliff, where the castle is located, lies an endless forest toward the north, hiding eldritch horrors few are brave to face, including me.
The mages have warned us not to wander during the night as dangerous beasts, supposedly of paragon rank, roam the area. I do not believe them, as the magic in the area is not saturated enough—maybe further north; who knows?
Either way, I am glad I got out of Veer and came here. The pay is better and the training more intense. After arduous months I have already advanced to the master rank, starting as a fresh adept. I still have a long way to go to beat the grandmaster here, but at least it is a start.
Last I heard, there was trouble steering in Veer. We are leagues away from Arganea, but it seems problems find common folk even up here, far away from the capital. It is most likely due to the nobles. At least people can make a decent living here, finding more aspects from the beasts and the surrounding area, not relying on the useless nobles to care for them.
On another note, my boys and I got our first mission today. It looks like all the time spent training with the eerie shadows will be put to good use as the high mages round up every soldier they have here in Gloomvault. Something is coming from the north. A threat, they say, so we are to be grouping up later this evening and try to intercept it.
The high priest will lead the charge if I can believe it. The lads think it is a ruse, and the old bastard has been spreading rumors of overthrowing the local powers with our help. If that is true, I will be no part of it. Nothing good comes from the heretics praying not to the local gods but to the vast entities of the unknown.
Ethan finished the entry and paused for a minute, surprised at what he had read. “We are in the north. The frontier as I thought,” he sighed. “God dammit, that is the middle of nowhere! The capital is not even near here. My best bet is the Veer if it is still standing.”
He looked around the room, completely ignoring the revelations about gods and other beings being mentioned, and thought, I hope the place is still there and is not deserted as this castle. Now that would suck.