A loud knocking stirred Owen from his sleep, blinking the crust from his eyes. Owen heard a voice call out from the hallway.
“Mr. Owen, we have everything all packed. Please come down stairs for breakfast as soon as you can.”
Waking up, Owen dismissed the notification for his Basic Poison Resistance increasing and lazily walked into the washroom. After finishing his morning business and washing his face, Owen equipped his usual armor and gear before putting his pack on and double-checking his room. Seeing that everything was in its place and nothing was forgotten, Owen went downstairs. Reaching the large bar area, is wasn’t hard for Owen to spot Selia and the others at one of the tables. Making his way over, Owen greeted everyone before sitting in the open seat between Selia and Alice.
“Is this mine?” Owen asked, noticing that everyone else was already eating from some of the plates on the table.
“Good morning to you too, Owen, but yes, that’s a quick plate to help wake everyone up. Once everyone finishes, we will head out.” Selia said as she slid over to the front counter and began talking with someone who stood there.
“Does Selia not eat breakfast?” Owen asked Alice as he began devouring the food.
“No, most Lamis only have a meal every few days. Something about the way they process food, I think? I have a friend who is an Arachnari, and I know they prefer to drink soups and cut up their meat into tiny pieces. So maybe it’s something similar?” Alice mused as the two continued to eat their food. Once everyone finished breakfast, Alice took charge of getting everything cleaned up before letting Owen know they would be outside waiting. Nodding, Owen made his way over to the counter, where Selia and another woman were chatting.
“Selia, everyone finished breakfast and are waiting outside for us.” Turning to the lady at the counter, Owen continued, “Hello, Ma’am, I’m Owen. I was staying in room one. Here is my key. Is there anything else you need before I head out?”
“So the Hero is polite; color me surprised. No, dear, this lovely woman has your meal covered, so ensure she gets to Moonkeep in perfect condition.” The older woman joked while taking the key from Owen. “Thank you for staying, dear. Be sure to come by and chat if you are ever nearby.” Hearing snickering, Owen turned to look at Selia, who held her arm out.
“Well, dear Knight, you will escort me, correct?” Selia asked with a grin. Playing along, Owen saluted before interlinking his arm with hers and responding.
“Of course, I shall escort you to our Hall in Moonkeep,” Owen responded, enjoying the playful atmosphere as the two smiled and laughed while making their way outside. Once outside, Owen saw a giant lizard strapped with multiple packs, crates, and barrels. Owen was momentarily confused before one of the young ones came and grabbed what seemed to be the creature's reins.
“Have you never seen a Skattle before?” Selia asked, seeing the confusion on Owen’s face.
“No, I haven’t. Come to think of it, I don’t think I’ve ever seen a horse before.”
“Well, horses are mostly used by the nobility, most Merchants, and even some Calvary Knights tend to use Monsters.”
“You can use monsters for that?” Owen asked, shocked at how the beasts don’t attack everyone on sight.
“Well, they are tamed, of course.” Seeing that Owen still looked quizzically at the creature, Selia continued, “A typical evolution of the Farmer or Commoner Class is the Monster Tamer Class. This Class allows someone to tame a mutated species for domestication. Horses, deer, poultry, and even our skattle are examples. According to records, once an animal has been tamed, it reverts to pre-mutation biology. This decreases their aggression and allows for a tamed pair to breed.” Selia explained as they walked alongside the creature on their way to Moonkeep.
“You sure know a lot about them, Selia. Were you a scholar of some kind before you became an Oracle?”
“Exactly that. I was a Scholar before my Tier 3 evolution when I picked Oracle. Although I did study all the young ones' classes and what they wanted so I could guide them on this trip. Speaking of, Marco dear, can you come over here for a moment.” Hearing the call, Owen noticed one of the young ones stopped walking with the others and heading towards them. They were small, maybe only coming up to Owen’s shoulder, with a thin build. They had onyx-colored fur, with large feathers running down both arms, a small beak, and a few unruly feathers atop their head. Curious, Owen used his Eye on them.
Marco Phithis | Merchant Level 2
Name: Marco Phithis Class: Merchant Species: Avianth Level: 2 EXP: 20/155 Health : 39/39 Stamina : 70/70 Mana: 184/184 Stats Strength: 5 Endurance: 4 Dexterity: 12 Vigor: 12 Intelligence: 36 Focus: 16 Skills Sneak, Survival, Barter, Appraisal, Keen Eye, Mana Flight, Crealexis
This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.
“Yes, Ms.Noraillon?” Marco asked as he walked alongside her.
“When we get to the town, we’re going to be stopping by Owen’s Mercenary Hall. I want you to see his Quartermaster about selling our things. Let him know you are in training; I’m sure he’ll be able to help you with a few of your Skills.”
“What? By myself? But Ms.Noraillon.” Marco started to say, panic set in their face.
“No buts, Marco. You need to learn. I thought you wanted to make lots of money? Isn’t that what you were singing about last night.”
“Well, yes. But they will be at a higher level than me, we’ll lose so much money if I’m in charge. I don’t want to be a problem.” Marco said, sounding scared and frustrated.
“Hey,” Owen said gently, “I’ll go in first and talk to Boulder. He’s a nice guy, so I’m sure he won’t do anything like that. How does that sound, Marco?”
“Are you sure he’s nice?”
“He’s a giant softy, I promise, okay,” Owen assured the young one.
“Okay, I’ll do my best,” Marco exclaimed before running ahead and chatting loudly with the others, talking about the supplies they had and what he should sell.
“You handled that extremely well, Owen, are you used to dealing with the young?” Selia asked as they watched Marco talk excitedly with the others, scribbling things down on a small pad they pulled out of somewhere.
“Eh, I’m just used to solving problems. Sometimes, all kids need is some candy and a promise you are there to help them. Speaking of, how old is Marco? They seem very young?”
“I belive he was 11 when he got his Class. That was the last Light Season, so he had little time to learn before coming on the caravan. Talking about being young, what about yourself. You couldn’t have been older than 16 when you got your Class, Owen?”
“What?” Owen asked, caught off guard by the question, “How old do you think I am?”
“Hmmm, well, you are too skilled a fighter to be Tier 1, so you are at least Tier 2. But you don’t look too mature, so you're 18 or 20 at most?” Selia answered while tilting her head. Thinking about it, Owen wasn’t sure how old he was. He had died after struggling once he got out of the Marines; he was 22 then, so what was he now? This body wasn’t as broken as he felt when he got out, so it wasn’t the same as before he got struck by the car. Come to think of it, Ive never seen my reflection here. All the shop windows were cloudy glass, and I hadn’t seen a mirror around. His thoughts were in a jumble as Owen turned to Salia.
“I’m not sure, actually; I think I'm 19 or 20?”
“It’s fine, Owen. I was just teasing you a bit. Most people lose track of their age once they get their Class since it’s hard to tell someone’s age once they get to Tier 3 and higher.”
“Wait, how old are you then, Salia?”
“Owen,” She gasped, raising her hand in fake outrage, “How dare you ask a young woman her age.” They stared at each other for a moment before breaking into laughter.
“Your right. I apologize for daring to imply you are a day over 20.” Owen said dramatically, posing before another fit of laughter took him. Once they both calmed down, Owen looked ahead and noticed that the walls of Moonkeep were finally visible. “Well, we’re almost there, Selia; those are the southern walls of Moonkeep, so just a bit more before we can rest at the Hall.” Smiling, they continued on their way until the gate was in sight, letting out a sigh of relief as there was no line; they made their way before a guard called out for them.
“You there! Stop! State your business here!” The guard called out while they crossed their lances, baring the way into town. Letting out a cry of shock, the young ones took a few fearful steps back.
“Hey! They are with me. They are coming to the Hall to-” Owen tried to get out before the guard cut him off.
“I don’t need to hear anything from you, Sell Sword, you,” He said, pointing at Selia, “What business does your kind have here?”
“We are a Merchant caravan from the Arak League,” Selia said as she retrieved a document from one of her many hip pouches before handing it to Owen, “This is a copy of our Merchant Guild License.” As Owen took hold of the paperwork, the guard rudely gestured for him to hand it over. Once Owen walked over and held the document, the guard snatched it away. After reading it for a few seconds, the guard huffed before folding it back up and handing it back.
“Fine. Foreign travelers pay 25 copper per head and a silver for the monster. Where will you be, and how long do you expect to stay within our walls.”
“What!” Owen exclaimed, shocked at the guard's price, “That’s so expensive for some kids and a silver for a pack beast!”
“It's fine, Owen,” Selia said as she slid up next to him, “Here are 2 and a half silvers. We will be at the Bladethorn Hall for rest and trade before leaving for Light. We shouldn’t be here for more then a few hours.”
“Good,” He roughly responded before looking at Owen, “Where’s your 25 copper Sell Sword.”
“25, I normally only pay 1,” Owen argued with the man before he sharply cut him off.
“You might as well be a foreigner, being so close to some monster, and escorting them into our city like it's acceptable.”
“Monster! What the hell are you on about, man!” Owen said, trying to contain his voice. “It’s just a stupid tamed lizard. It's carrying the goods; what do you have against it.”
“I could care less about the beast. I mean the thing clinging to you, pretending to be a person.” The guard spat out at him. Then it clicked; they were talking about Selia, not the Skattle. Furious, Owen was about to explode on the guard when he felt a shaky arm holding onto his own. Looking over at Selia’s sunken face, Owen’s anger only grew.
“Owen, please,” He heard her whisper. Quickly, Owen controlled his wrath, reaching into his pocket and summoning 25 coins; he placed them into the guard's waiting hand.
“Good. Now get out of my sight, Sell Sword.” The guard chided Owen as he led the group into the town; as they cleared the gate, Owen shot back one last look at the Guard and used his Eye.
Vance | Lancer Level 11
Name: Vance Class: Lancer Species: Human Level: 11 EXP: 840/1165 Health : 142/142 Stamina : 136/136 Mana: 59/59 Stats Strength: 16 Endurance: 14 Dexterity: 11 Vigor: 11 Intelligence: 10 Focus: 10 Skills Spearmanship, Marching, Riding, Kite Shield Mastery