I don't feel good about this. I really don't. But the honest truth is that I don't feel that I can continue this story for the time being. The current stretch of the story (the fetch quest and the merchant) wasn't something I planned for and was really just added to give me a couple of extra chapters. I immediately regretted it but I don't want to go back and say "Actually, that didn't happen", and now I don't know how to untangle this and get the story back to my plan.

The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.

Also, I hate my writing. Not the act of writing. I hate MY writing. I look back at what I've written and it's just so sloppy and not at all up to my standards.

All this is to say: I'm done for now. The story is going on hiatus for the foreseeable future and I may or may not come back to it when I feel that my writing is worth your time. Thank you all for your support and I hope you live wonderful lives.