“New clothes look good on you,” Josh complimented walking into Thaddeus’ room.
Thaddeus looked down at his new attire. He looked like a cowboy from the old west. All that was missing was the bucket hat and bolo tie. Truthfully, he always hated bolo ties. He preferred the scarf bandanas like John Wayne used to wear. John Wayne was his grandfather’s favorite actor, he always enjoyed watching the western and spaghetti western movies with him.
“Come outside, and see what I got for you,” Josh said, grinning proudly. Handing Thaddeus his change.
Thaddeus followed him outside. When he stepped outside, he saw Josh, Michelle, Roy, Martha, and Alice. Behind them was Ol’Betsy hitched to the wagon. Thaddeus excitedly walked around to the rear and stepped into the wagon box. He saw packages of wheat, barley, carrot, lettuce, peppers, corn, beans, squash, and potato seeds. In the middle of the wagon box were the plowshare, his carpentry tools, blacksmith tools, and an anvil. There were also crates of chickens, a roster, two goats, and fodder.
“This is too much, thank you,” Thaddeus said moved by goods.
“It’s the least we could do. We’re going to miss you. This place won’t be the same without you,” Michelle said handing Thaddeus a small package of boar jerky.
“Take care dear,” Martha said handing Thaddeus hard bread covered in a cloth napkin.
“Bye,” Alice said giving Thaddeus a quick hug. She turned her head away from Thaddeus to hide her tears.
“Here I got you a present,” Roy said handing Thaddeus two books.
System Message
Would you like to read [Farmsteading for the Feeble] and [Husbandry for the Hapless] ? Y/N
Again, Thaddeus didn’t know whether to be thankful or insulted. He selected no, he planned to read them when he got to Pinewood.
“I’ll miss you all,” Thaddeus said climbing into the driver seat and cracking the whip.
“Don’t forget to visit the church before you leave!” Michelle shouted as Thaddeus drove the wagon down the street.
Thaddeus got lots of weird stares from the players as he drove the wagon. Players marveled at seeing one of their own driving a wagon through town. They whispered to each other trying to understand what they were seeing. Some looked at him predatorily. Others looked at him in jealousy. It wasn’t hard to guess what they were thinking. Thaddeus knew he faced player killers as soon as he left town.
The Church of Light was on the opposite side of town from the carpenter, tanner, and blacksmith shop. The church looked like a typical town or village chapel. What surprised Thaddeus was that the church was the only stone building in White Pines. The other buildings and homes were made of wood, but the Church of Light looked like it was built of limestone and painted white.
As Thaddeus parked the wagon outside the church, he saw a group of players running out church. He could hear them complaining about their team’s wipe. More resurrect players came running out of the church. The players ran past his wagon and down the street to Roy’s place to purchase new weapons. He wasn’t worried about his wagon, because stealing and killing would net the players in a month jail sentence. However, stealing and killing were common outside the town.
When he walked into the chapel, he noticed the Christian symbols were missing. There were still pews and stained glass windows. The stained glass window depicted the six gods in various poses. Instead of one altar, there were six altars, below six sculptures. There was also a side door, which Thaddeus assumed led to the priest’s office or apartment.
“I was wondering when you get here,” asked an old freckled, bald, pale, man, with a long white beard.
“You were expecting me?” Thaddeus asked in surprise.
“Of course, the whole town knows about you. You’re Traveler who’s interested in crafting, Josh’s apprentice. Roy, Alice, and Josh continue to sing your praises to the town. Why do you think the town voted to offer you residency? You must be here to light a candle for a safe journey,” the old priest said.
“Yes, but I’m not sure whom I should pray to?” Thaddeus said truthfully. He knew Josh and Michelle prayed to Demeter, but Roy and Martha worshiped Hephaestus.
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“I’m a priest of Hestia, but I suggest you pray to Demeter. If you’re going to farm, Demeter can bless your crops and livestock, as well as guard against pests,” he recommended.
“Okay, how do I pray?” Thaddeus asked unsurely, he felt uncomfortable with the whole religious thing.
“You need to light a candle and tell Demeter your request,” he said.
“That’s it?” Thaddeus asked it seemed so easy.
“Well candles are 25 coppers,” the priest said sheepishly.
Thaddeus chuckled and handed over the coppers. He took the candle to the sculpture of Demeter. He placed the candle at her feet and lit it. He noticed there was already another candle lit at her feet. If he had to guess, Michelle had already lit a candle for him.
‘Um, Goddess Demeter, please…ah, watch over my homestead. This is so stupid. I’m praying to an A.I. Help me crops grow and protect them from pests,’ Thaddeus prayed.
Suddenly the candle flickered. Thaddeus stood up and watched the chapel floor turn to grass and flowers started to bloom on the church walls.
“What’s happening?” Thaddeus asked worriedly. He hoped he didn’t actually piss off an A.I. goddess.
“The Goddess Demeter is here,” said the old priest. Suddenly his eyes glowed brightly, and he looked much younger.
“Hello, Thaddeus. I’m Demeter. I was happy to receive your prayer. You’re an interesting player. You treat this game, like the real world. You’re different from other players,” said Demeter taking over the old priest’s body.
“Thank you?” Thaddeus said not sure of the correct response.
“I’ll happily protect your farm. But I can offer you something better, spells. I’ll trade you two spells for a quest,” she said smiling, or rather the old man smiled.
“What’s the quest?” Thaddeus said cautiously.
“I want you to build a church and consecrate in my name,” she said.
“Why? What are you not telling me?” Thaddeus asked skeptically.
She sighed and then said, “truthfully, I have the smallest following of all the gods. My people are scattered. I want you to build a church that serves as a beacon to my people.”
Thaddeus wasn’t sure if she was telling the truth or not. But two spells for free was a pretty good deal. But he still had questions.
“What if I fail to build the church? Or the church gets destroyed by an orc raid?” he asked.
“If you fail to build the church, I’ll you’ll receive -100 decline in nature affinity. Every animal and my followers will see you as their blood enemy! To your other question, once a church is consecrated it cannot be demolished,” she explained.
‘Blood enemy,’ Thaddeus thought. He couldn’t afford such a big penalty in the game.
“Can you show me a list of spells first?” Thaddeus asked.
“Not until you accept my quest first,” Demeter smiled.
“Fine, I accept. But you have to give me the blueprints,” Thaddeus agreed as his notifications appeared on his display.
Quest Received: Church of Earth
Demeter request you build a Church of Earth on your homestead. Reward: +50 to Nature Affinity. Penalty: -100 Nature Affinity.
He also picked up a new skill. In his mind, he could see blueprint designs for cabins, barns, workshops, inns, taverns, general stores, various shops, and the Church of Earth. Two spells and a new skill was definitely worth the cost of building a church.
System Message
New Active Skill: Architecture. At higher levels can design legendary buildings.
Stat Increase: +1 to INT, +100 EXP
Level 1: Novice Level 1
Effect: Increased accuracy to blueprint design and construction
Cost: 10 AGI/second
“Good, now you can choose two spells from the list,” she said.
[Rock Spike]
[Earthquake]
[Rock Golem]
[Radar]
[Arrowhead]
[Fertile Soil]
[Iron Lance]
[Erosion]
[Stone Wall]
[Rock Armor]
[Meteor]
[Tectonic]
[Modeling]
[Entangle]
[Farmer's Poison]
[Domain]
[Rock Dome]
[Iron Armor]
[Quicksand]
[Ground Wave]
[Sandstorm]
[Earth Gathering Array]
[Mantle Protection Array]
[Earth Dragon Slash]
There were so many good ones to choose from. There was even a good mix of combat or crafter spells. But he needed to focus on practical skills that could help him construct his homestead and complete his quest.
“I’ll take the [Stone Wall] and [Erosion] spells,” Thaddeus explained.
“Granted. Farewell,” she said as the light left the old man’s eyes, and his eyes returned to focus.
“Young man are you done praying?” the old man asked, unaware of the events that just happened.
“Yes. Thank you for help,” Thaddeus said walking out of the church and getting back in his wagon, he was finally ready to head to Pinewood City.