Chapter 134: Family and Friends
The next morning, the team had a relaxed breakfast. Several members of the team had taken to reading The Adventurer’s Tidings along with Nara and Encio. In her portable mailbox, Nara also received two additional messages. Beyond her subscriptions, Lee Hu was one of the few people who sent her messages (about her sponsors), so it came as a rare surprise to see two other senders. Ah, the benefits of magical mailing—a complete lack of junk mail.
For those without fixed residences, a portable mailbox was issued. Nara had registered her team’s active residence at the relevant government office at her portside lot, and they would send out messengers to deliver the mail. Anything non-critical was delivered on a weekly basis, while important messages or ordinary mail could be expedited for a fee. Alternatively, she could check the mailing office if she wanted to receive something early that was waiting for the weekly send out.
“What do you have there?” Encio said, peeking over the table at what Nara held in her hands.
“An invitation to the Invention Society, and a letter from Amara.”
“Oooh?” Encio murmured, curious.
“Isn’t there a Craft Society?” Eufemia said, still focused on her own reading but absently participating in the table’s discussion.
“They’re not the same,” Encio said, “although they work closely together. The Invention Society is focused on practical applications of artifice, magic, and engineering, as well as contract rights associated with research and business. The Craft Society is who you commission to organize and make complicated artifacts and objects. Your crafter eccentric, Henri, should be in the Craft Society.”
“He’s probably not.” Knowing Henri and his penny pinching, obsessive, introverted ways, he’d probably never thought to join.
“You should probably withhold funds until he does,” he suggested pleasantly.
“R&D versus manufacturing,” John said with an understanding nod, looking more profound in his posture than he really was.
“R&D?”
“Research and Development on our world. Most large corporations in our world had an R&D department.”
“What does the invitation say?” Encio said, crowding close again.
She smacked him lightly with the mail. “If you’d stop pestering me with questions, I could finish reading it.”
“Can’t you do both? Hurry it up.” Eufemia said, accepting no bullshit.
With a higher spirit attribute came increased mental capabilities. Reading and simultaneously sustaining a conversation, even if poorly done, was possible at normal rank, so doing so at bronze rank was a given.
Nara grumbled, but finished reading the invitation and the letter. She handed the invitation to Encio once she had finished for him to read as well.
“Basically,” Nara started, “My inventions and my joint projects are already registered with the Church of Knowledge.” A shrug. “Can’t hide anything from them. Amara, Chelsea, and Henri are adding me as a joint inventor-developer of the stuff I’ve made with them. And another two things Redell is registering me as the sole inventor of. I’ve already qualified to join the Invention Society, so it’s just benefits if I do. Access to mediators, crafters, supplies, etcetera.”
“Your inventions will be made public?” John asked, concerned. “Is that wise? Hadn’t we tried to keep on the mum this whole hullabaloo?”
“They’ve already kidnapped me once so there isn’t a point in keeping it secret anymore,” Nara reasoned. “According to Amara, since I’m already target, I might as well gain the public reputation as well as income generation if I decide to make a contract to produce and sell the inventions. She also says it’ll be useful in Rowen.”
“Why does that matter?” John asked.
“You might want to read this letter, Eufemia,” Nara said, handing it to her. “The part that’s from Chelsea,” she specified.
Eufemia’s brows furrowed, and she took the letter. Her gaze only deepened as time passed, and the breakfast table was quiet in anticipation.
Eufemia sighed, and handed the letter back to Nara.
“My father is in Rowen,” she said.
“Hold on a minute and fill me in. How did Chelsea know about your parents?” John asked.
“He’s not being very secretive. It says he’s become a minor noble in the Rowen Kingdom through some inventions. The type of noble that bought their title.”
The Rowen Kingdom valued invention, research, engineering, improvements, and production. Like the Athens of old, it was the world center for the spreading of ideas, information, and innovation. It surpassed Rona in population, taking the spot as the most populous nation in the world.
“Minor isn’t quite right,” Nara said. “His actual noble status is minor, but apparently, he’s made a killing on his invention. He’s rich and being rich makes him a big name in politics. Probably cored himself up to silver rank.”
“And he’s part of the pro-war faction,” Eufemia said with an unusually serious expression.
“Pro-war faction? What’s all this about?”
A crystal board was conjured behind them, and Encio stood to write on it, completely in sync with Nara’s intentions.
“The pro-war faction is the faction of Rowen politics that seeks to annihilate Nekroz. There’s varying degrees of extremity, from complete annihilation to just wiping out their organizational structure,” Enio explained. “They believe that as things stand, the undead threat will continue to grow. The incident with Siyu is evidence that they’ve extended their reach and influence beyond their borders.”
Encio drew another word onto the board. “The pro-accord faction is the faction of Rowen that seeks an amicable resolution with the undead threat.”
“An amicable resolution, is that even possible?” Aliyah said.
“Nekroz has their own internal politics, as John and Eufemia mentioned. The common folk want relief from the oppression of the high ranking undead. Low ranking vampires don’t kill anybody, just take their blood. There’s a division in political ideology between the high rank and lower ranks of Nekroz.”
“The rich versus poor—”
“The traditionalists and the progressives,” Encio added, his perspective a tad different.
“A tale as old as time,” Nara concluded.
“We’ve established that it’s possible,” Encio said, twirling his pen, “but it’s unlikely. Many people have grievances against vampires. Those that allow themselves to be turned are no exception, even if they haven’t killed anybody. How many would allow themselves to be turned if they weren’t hunted down for immortal life?”
“A lot of people,” Nara said. “In our world there’s plenty of stories on the price people would pay for eternal life.”
Encio nodded. “Such stories exist here. Many would choose to become vampires for eternal life, no matter the consequences. They would upset the balance of the world for their own gain; Once the undead become too many and too powerful, they would cease to cooperate.”
“Why restrain your blood intake and slow your progress if you are the majority power of the world,” Eufemia muttered darkly.
“It is a self-fueling path to destruction,” said Encio. “What begins agelessness, grows into a lust for more: more political power, more people like their own. Even if its just a fraction, as undead, their numbers will grow with no natural death to curtail them.”
“Unless they’re killed,” Eufemia said flatly.
“The pro-accord faction isn’t so half-baked,” Encio said. “They understand that without severe restrictions, the undead will become an uncontrollable problem. Their overall goal is to control Nekroz to stymie the influence of the undead. By offering peaceful resolution, the current population is incentivized to work with them against their rulers. They get to keep their lives, even if they aren’t allowed to create more vampires or undead.”
The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.
“Their intentions aren’t purely amicable,” John pondered. “They want to fracture Nekroz from the inside out.”
“The pro-accord faction wouldn’t be allowed to exist if their intentions were to enrich the power of undeath,” Encio said reasonably. “Rowen is the closest nation to Nekroz. Many may, like Eufemia, have relatives that are undead.”
“Why’s her father part of the pro-war faction then?” John asked, sipping on a very dark tea that was almost coffee-like, but would never taste quite the same. “Shouldn’t Mr. Teresina be pro-accord?”
“I said many are pro-accord, not all. This is just speculation, but he may have a stipulation to his support of the pro-war faction. For example, preserving the lives of his wife and daughter. He’s an important political force, so promising to save their lives is but a small concession.”
“Alternatively,” Aliyah said, “The pro-accord faction may not be moving fast enough for him. Peace is brokered slowly. For a father that misses his wife and daughter, it must feel torturous.” She cast her glance at John, who shared a similar plight from the flip side of the coin. “What sort of man is your father, Eufemia?”
“I…don’t know.” Eufemia began, unusually subdued. “I was taken by my mother to Nekroz when I was 12…It’s been 14 years since then. Last I remember, he was an indecisive, unreliable man.” She nearly spat those words, clear with her unresolved love and resentment. “Someone who made promises but never fulfilled them…I can remember each time an invention failed, we moved into smaller and smaller houses, further and further away from the shine of the city. Each time he took money from our savings he would apologize and promise this time he’d succeed. By the time we were living in a wooden shack at the outskirts of the city, my mother had enough and left.”
“I’m sorry Eufemia,” John said, and offered a comforting one-armed side-hug.
Eufemia sighed. Her feelings for both parents were tied up in a knot with no ends to unravel it from. “I don’t know if I resent him or even if I want to see him. I do but I also don’t. Maybe he’s a changed person now. Maybe he’s a successful fancy inventor. He still failed us when we needed him. And then my mother failed me.”
“I could be good to see him,” John said. “Sort out your own feelings, for your own benefit. A resolution.”
A part of him, as a father, would want to see his daughter. He understood her father’s guilt and his need to right a wrong—one that couldn’t be righted. This was about Eufemia, however, and what she should do should be for herself.
“Sorry to derail the sentiment train, but it’s probably better if we don’t,” Nara said, waving the letter.
Eufemia nodded, “If the long lost daughter shows up in Rowen who people think was his sole motivation to join the pro-war faction shows up, what do you think will happen, John?”
“Does it really need to be this complicated? It’s just a daughter seeing her father,” he said wistfully.
“Nothing is simple when it comes to politics, John,” Eufemia said, admonishing, falling back into the familiar dynamic of ‘oh, silly John’.
“The pro-war faction might abduct her or even try to assassinate her,” Encio said. “They’ll try to prevent contact at all costs.”
“How about a letter?” Nara said, “Couldn’t you send him a letter?”
“Didn’t you read your letter from Chelsea first? She said not to do anything until we’re silver rank.”
Rowen was a high magic zone, a region frequented by silver rank adventurers. Gold rank adventurers were found in greater numbers in Rowen, especially compared to Sanshi were a single gold ranker was normally hard to spot, barring priests.
“Is sending a letter really that dangerous?” John asked. This, at least, wasn’t a silly enough question for Eufemia to rib him for it.
“It depends on how much power her father really has,” Encio said. “Whether he’s in control of his surroundings and subordinates or not. He may be rich, influential, and have a strong reputation in Rowen thanks to his invention—”
“What is his invention anyway?”
“It’s not what he invented it’s what he improved,” Aliyah said, removing one of those updating magic plaques onto the table. “Here: A miniaturized magic battery.”
“Miniaturized?”
“The large ones, or rather, normal ones are used to power expensive arrays during monster surges,” Aliyah said. “These miniaturized ones have a much smaller capacity, but they’re unmatched in versatility.”
“Can’t things just run off ambient magic? Why would you need miniaturized magic batteries?”
“Some artifacts can, others cannot,” Aliyah explained. “Spirit coins are concentrated magic, as are mana batteries. Many artifacts require a higher mana concentration, even if ambient magic would normally be enough to operate the device. The mana the miniaturized mana battery provides is at a concentration much higher than the ambient, even if it contains less than a typical mana battery.”
“What about spirit coins?”
“The prevalent issue with spirit coins is that they usually require periodic and manual re-application, either through rituals or some other method. Spirit coins refueling is more expensive than concentrating ambient magic down into a battery.”
“Gotta fuel the fire. So the mana battery is a more efficient, more versatile, automatic, and cheaper version of a spirit coin?”
“That’s rather simplified, but accurate enough for our purposes of understanding. The downside is the time and specialty equipment needed to charge a mana battery. Also, active arrays cannot use spirit coins to fuel them. Spirit coins can only be added to an array at its activation. Arrays that run out of ambient magic to fuel them need either mana lamps to passively gather magic, or a mana battery to fuel them, although using a mana battery requires specialty installments.”
“That’s one hell of an invention,” Nara said, thinking out loud. “Automation goes a long way. The less manual steps needed, the easier production becomes. This world’s energy storage technology far outpaces their ability to use it. One day, the technology might catch up to what this guy really just invented.”
Nara had an unsaid promise with Knowledge, so she didn’t say anything more, even with Aliyah’s almost feverish piercing gaze.
“Back to the more important subject,” Sen said, “Eufemia’s father.”
Encio nodded, continuing his explanation, “We have no grasp on your father’s political mastery. Based on what Eufemia has to say about him, it’s likely his subordinates are compromised. Unless he receives his communications directly, we should assume they’re being read.”
“They’d go that far?”
“Frankly, that would be an unusual and intrusive level of observation, even for a rich political player. Without detailed information of the situation, it’s risky to make any move.”
“And unless we’re silver rank, what moves we make aren’t going to matter anyway.”
“I can try portaling to Rowen and getting a lay of the land. I’m not as politically astute as Encio or Sen but, I can see what I can do. I might be able to sneak into his office and hand him a letter personally, if that’s what you want Eufemia. No promises though. What do you all think?”
“Do not attempt breaking and entering until we understand the situation, Nara,” Sen said, “Otherwise, it’s the best we can do. We’ll be relying on you Nara.”
She nodded, “Leave it to me.”
*****
After the morning discussion, the team dispersed to their own individual projects, training, and tasks. The end of the year festivities were fast approaching. With Nara’s portal, they could complete quick contracts, but they kept mostly to the city. Her portal range was still low, everyone was looking forward to a party. John and Nara weren’t the only two who wanted to experience the best of what Sanshi had to offer.
“Benefactor, you have a guest. Shall I direct him inside?”
She sighed, and rubbed her temple. It was Malik waiting outside. She could sense his aura from here.
“I may not have been direct enough last night.”
“Benefactor, you were slightly inebriated.”
“I really can’t ever date a 19 year old.”
“You say that and try to pair your 26 year old teammate with the 19 year old one,” Chrome scoffed telepathically.
“Firstly, they’re not romantic. Secondly, I was joking. Thirdly, this world has their own standards. Fourthly, essences…”
She paused.
Essences do something to the mind.
When a person gains an essence ability, they gain all that’s necessary to use that ability. An ability to breathe fire would include, during the time of the ability, protection against burning their own throat. Extending that line of thought, would essences not grant the inherent mindset necessary to use essence abilities in the first place? To use them against targets? Living beings? Not everyone was suited to fighting monsters long term as an adventurer, but even those without training such as core users could use their own abilities against monsters in order to defend themselves.
She’s heard snippets from Chelsea and Jago that essences have some sort of influence on the soul. She didn’t feel like she wasn’t herself, but that first time she fought that wolf, she hadn’t hesitated to get physical and bloody. Was it purely self-preservation, or something else? How would she know?
“Anyway, guide him in Sage. I’ll properly turn him down this time.”
Malik walked in guided by Sage, somehow simultaneously confident and nervous.
Nara sighed again, dreading this upcoming conversation.
He sat down across from her on the outdoor patio. It wasn’t visible, but barriers that isolated sound prevented their conversation from leaking if anyone was around. He deserved privacy.
“Sanshi’s greetings, Nara.”
“Greetings, Malik.”
She could already feel a knot develop where her stomach once was at his cautious optimism.
“Malik, I’m sorry you’ve come all this way to hear this.”
“I haven’t even said anything and you’re turning me down?”
“Yes. I wasn’t clear enough last night, but I’m not looking for a relationship right now. If you’re looking for something romantic or more than friends, you won’t find it. Not only because of my situation, the age difference, but that’s just the way I am. As lukewarm as room temperature milk.”
He was downcast at first. His first crush, crushed in turn. He had barely seen the path before him before it was cruelly swept away by high winds, ripped up from the ground with decisive violence.
But Malik Fenhu was a Fenhu. He understood when it was time to step back. If age was a problem, he would wait, if he wanted. Would his small love last the years? He knew what she was thinking without voicing it. He was a son of a powerful and rich family, renowned worldwide. She was a passing interest. After 5 years, no doubt another beautiful lady would have caught his eye. She was just one of many. There were plenty of strong, interesting, and passionate adventurers out there. Beyond her outworlder origins, she wasn’t unique.
“I understand,” he said calmly, putting up the strongest front he could muster, “I’ll take my leave.”
“Sage, if you could guide our guest?”
“There’s no need,” Malik said, a tad sharp. “I know the way.”
His steps quickened out of view to match the rate of his pounding heart. He sucked in a breath, suppressing the burning in his eyes. She may have just been his first crush, the woman he liked, but it still hurt.
He remember the way she advocated to help Raja and the others during the Adventurer Society examination, despite their insulting and arrogant behavior. He liked the way her fingers glided over her moon-string lute, when she hummed a tune no one else recognized. Or, how her face lit up when she played a jaunty tune for the workers during the Stone Forest expedition. Her face was normally blank, but face animated like a statue given life whenever she ate food she enjoyed. He liked how she listened to the outer, Zariel, and offered what help she could.
He wandered blankly into a park; his head deep underwater in his own thoughts and emotions. Sounds and voices were distant and muddled.
He sat down, and shortly after, a familiar aura sat down beside him.
“No luck, huh?” Aina said softly.
He shook his head.