Confused by the sudden barrage of notifications, Owen brought up his Achievement options and looked over his most recent ones.
Achievement: Relentless – Gained five or more levels in a single day. Increases VIG and END by 1.
Unique Achievement: Harrowing Temper – Survive a battle with less than 25% of total resources. Gain at least three levels from said battle. Increases STR and DEX by 1 every other level. >Prerequisite: War Scarred
Achievement: War Scarred – Survive a battle that has left physical and mental scars. Increases END and FOC by 1.
Distracted by the messages, Owen didn’t notice Borit still talking to him, not hearing a response. Borit reached out and placed a hand on Owen’s shoulder. Jumping at the touch, Owen finally responded.
“Sorry, I kinda got lost in my thoughts. I wasn’t paying attention; I’m sorry, Borit.”
“No, it’s okay,” Borit replied, “I was just talking about the village where we’re staying. Thankfully, merchants use it enough that it has an Inn. I was asking if you wanted to stay there? Or if you wanted to return to Moonkeep?”
“I’ll stay here today; I’m exhausted from today. I just want a bath, dinner, and a fluffy bed.”
“AHAHA,” Borit laughed, “That’s a great thought. We’ll lead you to the Inn; I’m sure we can work something out with the owner.” Allowing himself to be dragged along, soon, the trio arrived outside a large three-story building. Entering the Inn, it was well-maintained and decorated. With a large bar area and a nearby lounge, being dragged away from them, they instead walked up to a large counter. “Hello Mary,” Borit said to the women standing by the counter, “This is Mercenary Owen, and he would like one of the Merchant suites; he just saved my sister and I, so I was hoping you could give him a discount on the room since he only needs it for the one night.”
“Oh dear, of course, we can accommodate him,” Mary told Borit before addressing Owen, “ Even with a discount, Mr. Owen, it will still be five large coppers. Our merchant suites do come with their own washrooms, as well as dinner.” Before she could finish trying to sell the room to Owen, he slammed down five large coppers.
“That sounds lovely, Mary. I’ll take it,” Owen said while flashing a weary smile. She smiled as she took his money and handed him an ornate key.
“Your room one, it’s the first door on your left, second floor. These Merchants are across from you in room two. Dinner will be served in an hour. Thank you for your patronage, Mr. Owen.” Mary said with a small curtsy.
“That’s great, Owen. We’ll meet you for dinner then,” Borit said as he patted Owen on the shoulder and led the way toward the stairs. Nodding in agreement, Owen used his key and went into his new room. Locking the door behind him, he looked around the suite. It seemed to open into a large common area with two sofas facing each other, with a table between them. To the right was a small hallway with two doors opposite each other. Opening the right door led to the washroom, while the other led to the bedroom. Not wanting to wait, Owen entered the washroom and examined the tub. It seemed to have two handles that each had different colored mana stones, one red and the other blue.
Touching the red one, hot water began to fill the tub as it used his mana. Once the tub filled, Owen dismissed his clothing and sank into the hot water. As he relaxed, he brought up his Stats.
STATUS Inventory Armory Other Name: Owen Grest Class: Assault Marine Species: Human Level: 8 EXP: 415/600 Health : 499/662 Stamina : 499/648 Mana: 383/556 Stats Strength: 31 Endurance: 25 Dexterity: 26 Vigor: 24 Intelligence: 17 Focus: 21 Faith: 13 Luck 9
“So my Achievements still work, but I haven’t gotten any points or bonus points from leveling. Maybe it’s because I only get them from new levels. Does that mean I won’t be able to upgrade my Skills without using the Shop? That or I need to destroy more Dungeons. I wonder how rare they are?” Owen said as he let himself relax. Getting out of the tub, Owen looked down and found another stone at the bottom. Curious about what this one was, Owen used inspect on all the Stones.
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Enchanted Mana Stone: A stone with multiple enchantments, Create Water, Chilling Touch, and Mana-Siphon Enchanted Mana Stone: A stone with multiple enchantments, Create Water, Flaming Touch, and Mana-Siphon Enchanted Mana Stone: A stone with multiple enchantments, Destroy Water and Mana-Siphon
“That sounds like it’s computer code or something. That makes sense, I guess; it just does what it’s been programmed to.” As Owen thought about how the Enchantments here could be similar to electronics, he summoned his extra clothes. As he began getting dressed, he heard a knock on the door. Quickly pulling his trousers up, Owen headed to the main room and opened the door. Surprisingly, it was Alice, not Borit, as Owen had assumed.
“Uh, hey Alice. Did you want to come in, or?” Owen asked, confused at her showing up.
“Do you usually answer the door shirtless, Owen?” Alice asked while she walked into the room.
“Well, no. It just happens, I suppose. I would expect your brother to have come got me, not you. Sorry, I must have lost track of time in the tub.” Owen said as he returned to his room to throw his shirt on.
“Actually, I wanted to talk to you about something. Dinner still isn’t for another half-hour.”
“Yeah, that’s fine,” Owen said as he returned to the room and sat on the couch opposite her. “This isn’t about me healing your brother, is it?”
“Somewhat,” Alice responded, “I know you said you don’t need payment, and I accept that, but my brother accepted your offer of dinner with me. I was hoping you would reconsider; I just don’t. I’m not.” She rambled on before Owen spoke up.
“Alice, it’s fine. The dinner comment was a joke; I didn’t mean it. So please don’t worry about it; I didn’t mean to upset you. I’m sorry I joked like that with your brother.”
“Thank you,” Alice softly responded, “I didn’t want to offend you after you saved us. I’m sorry. I know you most likely aren’t like that, just. The bandits we ran into, they, they wanted me. The family was able to get them to back off, but I had never thought people would do something like that.” She spoke softly between sobs.
“I’m sorry Alice. Unfortunately, terrible people are out there; I’m glad you’re okay. I promise it’s fine. I healed your brother because he was hurt; it’s just what I do. I’ve been taught to protect others, so it’s just second nature to me. You and your family owe me nothing. I’m just glad you are okay.”
“Thank you, Owen. I’m sorry I said all that. I just didn’t want you to think badly of me. I love my brother, but sometimes he just doesn’t think. I didn’t want to start a fight when he was hurt.”
“It’s fine. My family was like that, too. If you feel up for it, how about we head down to eat with everyone. Don’t want to worry your family right.” Owen said as he stood up and offered his hand to Alice. Smiling, she gently took it. Owen helped her up, and they made their way back down to the bar. Coming into the ample seating area, Owen’s eyes scanned over the people until he saw Borit’s large frame at the far table. Seeing Owen, Borit stood up and waved them over. Making their way over, Owen noticed that Borit’s table was sparsely filled. But the people there were eating and laughing with each other, all together, even though they all appeared different.
“Owen!” Borit cheered as he neared the table, “Everyone, this is the man who saved Alice and I.” As he said it, Owen felt someone hand him a mug as Borit continued. “Cheers to our savior!”
“Cheers!” The entire table erupted, smiling; even Owen cheered as he downed the ale.
Attribute increased: Faith
Confused, Owen brought up his Stats, and sure enough, his Faith Stat went from 13 to 15. Weird, I don’t even know what that Stat does. Another thing to research, I guess. As Owen was being introduced to the various people around the table, he noticed that they all appeared to be a beast-kin of some type, with a few being a different race altogether. His biggest shock came from meeting Borit’s mother, the leader of the caravan, as well as the Matriarch of their Clan.
“Hello, young Owen,” The Matriarch greeted, while Owen was shocked to see what he thought was a Lamia. “My name is Selia Noraillon; I would first like to thank you for saving the young ones. While we do encourage them to explore and get stronger, I would never want them to lose their lives. As a sign of thanks, I want to pay for food tonight and hear more about you. One cannot often meet someone blessed by a God after all.”