The next morning, we made our way to a scribe’s shop called The White Quill. The shop was close to the lodge, which made the journey pretty quick. The shop owner and Amara spent their time going over the various writing implements. Something that after an hour, I had to admit, was boring. The shopkeeper was an elderly elvish woman with dark skin and flowing robes. She was polite with Amara but was beyond eager when she realized just how much I was willing to spend. Once we finished our shopping, Amara gained a strange wooden tablet that was strangely similar to a modern writer’s tablet. She could write out her notes and then store the information in a crystal. These crystals worked like a micro SD card. The shop owner explained that it was possible to build other items that could use the crystals, but that was beyond what she could provide in the short term.

We then spent an incredible amount of money on paper, ink, styluses, quills, and every other writing object. Speaking with the pair of women further drove me to the point that I wasn’t at home anymore. Reading and writing was a skill that was viewed as a symbol of prestige. The majority of people couldn’t read. This meant that either the prompts that appeared were just auto-understood by everyone or there was something I was doing wrong. I had to open my prompts and mentally read them. I made a mental note to ask Amara about that later. Once we had finished buying the items she needed, I instructed the woman to have the other items delivered to the Guildhall as soon as she could.

With that finished, we left her shop and made our way toward the Guildhall. While we walked, I decided to ask a few questions that had been bothering me. “What would you say the literacy rate is for a city this size?”

There was a brief pause before she answered. “It's difficult to know for sure. I assume you don’t want me to include casters with spells that can translate words for them. I would say the upper-class members of the city, especially the heirs. Between 10 and 20 percent, depending on the number of adventurers who learn to help deal with traps.” I nodded and was about to tell her that I wanted to change that when I got a quest.

You have been offered the Quest: Words For A New Age

You have been made aware of the dismissal literacy rate of people in Akopia. As the fledgling ruler of a city-state, you have the opportunity to change things for your people. Will you share the gift of words with your people?

Success Condition: Increase the literacy rate of your citizens to 100%

Rewards: Unknown

Penalty for failure or Refusal: Unknown

Do you accept this Quest: Yes/No?

I accepted the quest and realized I had no way of even knowing the literacy rate of my people. Hell, I didn’t even know who my people were. Either way, a quest was a quest and there was no time limit on it. After that, we settled into small conversations until we reached the Guildhall. Unlike the first time, it was empty. The small garden was gated off, and the rooms were just empty.

“Can you both go and search around for other people?” I sent the message to my familiars who took it off my shoulders. The pair split up and flew through the building. “Is this normal? For this time of day, I mean?” I turned and looked at Amara.

“No, I don’t think I have ever heard of this place being empty. Work is almost always available, so someone is usually here.”

Before I could ask anything else, the sound of boots on solid stone came from behind us. I turned around and caught sight of a guard. He was wearing a metal breastplate and dark brown cloth. He had a spear in one hand and was wearing a helmet. “You are Darterrius?” His voice was oddly deep.

“Yeah? Can I help you?”

“Hazara and Guard Captain Meron have asked for you to meet them outside of the city.” The man spoke with a slight urgency that made me weary. I wasn’t sure if there was an issue, but Meron had a decent relationship with me, so it was probably not an issue.

“Who is Hazara?” I asked before mentally nudging my familiars to rejoin me.

“Hazara. The kind of matron of the Guildhall? She said that she was acting on your instructions when she gathered people. Is that not correct?”

When I realized who he was talking about, I held up a hand to stop him. The fact that I had once again forgotten to get someone’s name was annoying. “No, no, I didn’t ask her name last name. Can you lead the way?”

The man nodded before gesturing for me to follow. I nodded to Amara, and the three of us took off. Somehow, the man in armor was both faster and more resilient than we were. He could move through the crowds of people as if we were doing a pleasant run. I was struggling to breathe, let alone talk. Thankfully, the points I had put into Vitality and Endurance had proven themselves worth it. Amara was struggling to walk, let alone run. When we reached the outer wall, I found a small group waiting for me. Zakia, Meron, Hazara, and two other guards, each one holding spears.

“There he is,” Zakia called out as we came to a stop. I summoned my water skin and took a drink before handing it to Amara. Restoring your stamina didn’t make you feel less tired. It just gave you back the SP. Once I could speak properly again, I took in the situation.

“What’s going on?” Zakia looked playfully annoyed while everyone else ranged from amused to concerned.

“Well, it appears that you have drawn the attention of quite a few people. The Lord sent a runner last night to all the major taverns, inns, and brothels. He declared his support for your settlement,” Meron added quickly.

“Imagine our surprise when we found the Guildhall stuffed end to end with men, women, kanote, and children. Thankfully, the guards noticed our plight and took mercy on us. They were able to escort everyone out of the building only for more people to line up. They decided that we would need more space to deal with the influx, so we moved everyone out of the city.” Hazara said.

I blinked in confusion. Everything she said was confusing, but none more so than that word she used. “Kanote” was the first word I had encountered that didn’t translate to anything. I wasn’t sure if that was because the word had no similar words in English or if I just didn’t know it. I pushed that thought to the back of my mind as I processed everything else that was said. “How many people are out there?” I blurted out.

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

“We aren’t sure. We stopped counting after 2000. The group was becoming unruly, so we set up a perimeter to contain things.” Meron added, before grabbing her guards. “I am going to go and reinforce my men. Please come and take care of things soon.”

I turned my attention to Hazara. “An airship arrived about an hour ago. We could load everything into the holds, though the animals weren’t too happy about it. The pilot tells me payment has already been arranged, but you will have to give him the directions.”

I was more than pleased that she had taken care of everything. “Will you become with us?”

She shook her head. “As entertaining as I think your adventure will be, it’s not for me. I look forward to hearing about your exploits though, young lord. It will give me something to share with my children and grandchildren.”

I laughed at that before nodding my head. “Was there anything else I owed you? It sounds like things were a bit more difficult than I originally planned.”

“Not at all. I used the gold you provided, so I hope that isn’t a problem. The pilot seems like a good man, but I wouldn’t be too free with any remaining gold you may have.” With that said, she gave me a delighted smile before turning and making her way back down the street.

“We had better get out there. We don’t want anyone getting tired of waiting on you now, do we?” Zakia slapped a hand on my shoulder as she spoke. “I think most of them are here because of the dragons, though.”

“Right well, regardless, these people are looking for a fresh start and a new home. I can and will give them both.” We headed through the large stone door and outside into utter chaos.

When we got through the door, I caught sight of the massive crowd of people. I felt like a celebrity walking the red carpet. Only I wasn’t sure if these people were all happy to see me or if they were just loud. My ability couldn’t translate the words since they were just combining into noise. I found Meron and several other guards standing at the head of the group. We jogged over to them.

“How do we want to handle this? I don’t see anywhere I can go to be heard by the entire group. Would your people be able to help me with that?”

The captain nodded before handing over an earring that looked a bit like a blue tooth headset. Only it was made of stone. When the prompt appeared, I raised an eyebrow.

You have found: Earring of Sound Amplification Details: This item allows for a person to magnify the sound of their voice.

Item Rarity: Common

Item Quality: Average

Item Weight: .5lbs

I let out a low whistle when I finished reading the item. It was not a rare thing, but it was pretty useful. I made a mental note to look into getting one for myself. I placed the earring on my right ear and felt a soft humming sound. It was like the sound that a computer fan made when you first turned it on. After a second, the sound faded, and I connected to the magic of the item. I gave Meron and Zakia a thumbs up and turned to face the crowd. I knew that I was only going to get one chance at a first impression, so I took a moment to consider what I wanted people to think of me. It didn’t take long. I sent a mental nudge to both dragons who took the air. It wasn’t too hard to get them to circle me in the air.

The pair looked like the Yin, and yang symbol as they circled. After a few moments, the crowd started pointing. The conversations died off slowly as the dragons darted around and threw the crowd. I gave my darling familiars a minute to show off before casting Lesser light ray. Five rays of light shot from my hands like flares. Not wanting to be undone, both familiars unleashed the breath weapons in a cross pattern. The darkness and light clashed in the air. I called both dragons back to me as I stepped forward. The crowd slowly split and closed behind me.

“Hello!” I wasn’t sure if I needed to speak loudly for the enchantment to work, so I decided it was better to be safe than sorry. “I am sure you have all heard different things about me by now. I can not say for sure that you have only heard good things. What I can say for sure is that the offer you have heard is real. I have a settlement, no that isn’t completely accurate. I have the beginnings of a settlement. Right now I have people working hard to build up untapped, untamed wild lands. I intend to build a city that will be written and sung about for centuries.”

I paused for a moment to let my words sink in. The confusion that was settling in worked to keep everyone’s eyes on me. When I was ready, I started again. “I imagine that means little to you all. What I offer to you all is different. I offer an opportunity to at a fresh start. A home where mistakes and sins of the past are lost. I offer you an opportunity to build a life for yourself with your own two hands. For those of you forced to leave your homes by an unflinching enemy, I offer you a new place. A place where you are welcome. A place where you can rebuild and reclaim what you lost.” I offered another pause. This time I could feel excitement building in the crowd.

“To those of you who have fallen on hard times. Who aren’t where they wanted to be in life or those who are desperate for their chance to prove themselves? I offer you a choice. You can stay here. Stay in the safety of what you know.” I paused again, letting my gaze travel from person to person. Not letting anyone person get used to my attention before moving on to the next. “Or you can follow me. Forge a path behind me that will let you take charge of your life. I am giving you the chance that you need. I am allowing you to start over. A chance to be more than you are.” I paused again, this time walking to the middle of the group. The circle they had formed around me began to shrink. Tenebris and Sanaa leaped from my shoulders. Each one flew over a different part of the crowd. I wasn’t sure how I was going to approach this next part, so I decided to do it bluntly.

“I will not promise you an easy life, nor will I promise that I can protect you from the dangers of the wild. To be blunt, I can’t do that. I can promise that none of you will ever stand alone. I can promise that should you follow me into the world, I will meet every danger with you.” I could see there was apprehension on more than a few faces. Especially those with children with them. I could also see something else. I could see a hunger in each of their eyes. The parts of them that wanted better. Whether it was the father wanting to build a life for his sons and daughters or the mothers who would die to see their families safe. All of their eyes were on me. For the first time, I felt the weight of expectation on my shoulders. I smiled at the crowd and prepared to speak again when someone called out to me.

“What are our wages?!” I resisted the instinct to search for the voice. That moment never looked good. I wasn’t sure what an average day’s wage looked like in this world, so I decided not to offer a straight answer. “Every one of my citizens will receive a wage. Your time and work will be paid for the same as if you were working anywhere else. For those of you willing to work hard, you will find your fortune.”I was about to continue when a series of prompts burst into view.

You have completed the Quest: Homes for the Homeless.

The downtrodden and hopeful of Afrium have had the chance to get your measure. Many will decide to take you up on your offer.

Reward: 2,500 Experience points.

As soon as I finished reading that notification, two more appeared in the upper right of my vision. Both were in the shape of a roaring dragon. I ignored my familiars’ new level up and returned my eyes to the crowd. “We will be leaving in three hours. Be back here before then if you want to join us.”

With that said, I turned and made my way back over to Meron. Once I left the crowd, the hushed conversations returned to a fever pitch. I couldn’t tell how many people were considering leaving, but the fact that it was a spirited debate made me feel better about it.

“Well, you handled the situation better than I was expecting,” Meron said while gesturing to a pair of her guards.

“I will take that as a compliment. Now, where is the ship? I want to speak with the captain.”

She waved me to follow and started walking. We rounded the corner of the outer wall when I caught sight of a massive ship. It had to be the rival of any modern ship back home, only this one was made mostly out of wood. The overall design was like a pirate ship, but it had metal plating going along the sides. It had a central mast that went straight as if trying to touch the sky. The front of the ship had a wooden carving of a dragon in flight. The entire thing was beyond impressive. I looked at the ship and then back at Meron before laughing. “Well, that will do it.”