[Gwendolyn XIIIth Primal Moon
Race — Moonlight Oni
Level: 50
Health: 3800
Mana: 10,000 + 10,000
Str: 50
Dex: 50
Con: 150
Mag: 392
Foc: 50
Classes: Ex-Warlock (50), Adept (5), Farmer (1),
Skills:
Primal-Manipulation Rank 9/10
Harmonic-Manipulation Rank -/10
Weave-Manipulation Rank 2/10
Disenchanting Rank 10/10
Enchanting Rank 10/10
Primal-Enchanting Rank 5/10
First-Aid Rank 3/10
Meditation Rank 7/10
Farming Rank -/10
Active Feats (610):
General Feats:
Combat Casting
Enhanced Primal Magic
Greater Enhanced Primal Magic
Mana-Sight
Perfect Primal Magic
Class Feats
Warlock
Adept:
Beginner Magics
Farmer:
Perks:
Endless Mana — Awarded for casting multiple spells that consume the entire mana pool within a single minute. Increases maximum mana
Heroic Magic — Awarded for having 300 Mag. Increases Mag by 6%
Dragonslayer II — Awarded for slaying multiple dragons stronger than oneself. Grants bonuses against dragons.
Unbound — ]
Primal Magic — Magic gained from the land, spirits, or demons, it tends to be the most chaotic and destructive of magic.
XXXX
“Crystal Tributary,” Gwen pushed some of her still stark white hair from her eyes as she examined the area that would be her home for the years to come. A lush green valley nestled between mountains just high enough to have snow capped peaks in the summer, rolling green hills and cerulean forests claimed much of the valley floor, with a few farms that grew more sparse the further away from the valley’s largest settlement. Nestled as close to King’s River as it could get, Valor’s Rest was too large to be called a town but too small to be called a city, with many houses being built outside the walls that likely once contained the whole city.
The Crystal tributary split the valley in half, starting from the Manse Dam and flowing west before it took a sharp turn north, vanishing beyond the valley where it would join up with the much larger King’s River and head towards the capital. Even from her current vantage point some miles away, Gwen could see how the tributary earned its name. The water was clear, as clear as a mountain spring, but a thousand times the size. She could see the river’s rocky bottom until the depths grew too great and swallowed everything in a midnight blue.
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“I bet Alchemists love this place,” Gwen mused as she headed down the slope, the steepness making every step a bit of a bounce. She could understand why many would rather follow the roads that ran alongside the tributary, but that would add a week of travel time.
Teleportation would have been an option, but finding a wizard that had been to Valor’s Rest was probably impossible, and trying to charter an airship would be far too expensive.
“Then there’s horses.” Gwen could already feel those untrustworthy animals thinking about trying to kick her off. Somehow, despite not having any nerve endings in it at all, her broken horn thrummed with pain.
She assumed it had something to do with being a warlock, something like a hidden passive that just made normal animals hate her everliving guts.
The feeling was largely mutual.
XXXX
The southern gate to Valor’s Rest was a bridge that spanned the river at its most narrow where the water was fast and shallow just before it opened up into the wide, deep bend which slowed to a near crawl and rivaled some lakes in scope.
Buildings were already being built along this shore of the river, with some appearing to be made with a purpose that Gwen could only guess at. This side’s most prominent feature was the large, open building that had piles of planks and polished stone just laying about, where a group of a dozen or so construction workers all went about their day, with large work horses and heavy carts moving materials as needed.
“You there!” an older woman shouted from a large table that was covered in papers and maps. Blueprints, if Gwen had to guess. The woman’s hair was a dark, stormy gray, and her wolf-like ears were on full display, marking her as an elder of the beast folk. “Yes, pretty girl with the horns, I’m talking to you!
Gwen stared at the woman for a moment. Was it normal to get shouted out from so far away? Should she shout back?
“What, you never seen an old lady before? Get over here!”
Gwen blinked and looked towards the guard that was stationed on this side of the river. He was leaning against the gate and could only offer her a small smile and shrug in return.
“Are ya deaf?”
Gwen felt her shoulders slouch. If she ever wanted to hire someone to work on her house, she’d probably have to go through this woman. It wasn’t like she had an appointment anyways. With an ever so slightly forced smile on her face, Gwen headed towards the woman who at this point appeared to have forgotten about her and was now talking to a large—very large—red-haired man that had arms that looked like they were twice the size of Gwen’s waist. The man gave a short look at her, his green eyes widened, and his large furry round ears twitched.
The moment she stopped walking towards her, the woman’s gray eyes snapped towards her with predatory intent. With a noise that was half shout and half bark, the older woman brushed the man aside, sending him off to do his job.
“Thanks for coming over so quickly, dear.” The woman’s tone was the kind of sickly sweet that one might expect from a witch, or some kind of hag monster. “First things first: the name’s Gracie Eastpaw, and you are?”
“Gwen.” She eyed the woman with a mild indifference despite the smile she was trying to put on. “What can I do for you?”
“Straight to the point, and for having such pretty blue eyes, they sure can cut a person can’t they.” The woman’s smile vanished and she placed an elbow on the table, leaning in close as she waved off the workers that had come to see her. “I take it you’re not the usual riff raff that ends up in Valor’s Rest, now are ya?”
“That depends,” Gwen smiled and crossed her arms over her chest, leaning to one side as she prepared her response. “Do you normally call Ex-Breakers riff raff?”
The woman let out a low whistle and drummed her fingers along the table. “Can’t say that I do, but an Ex-Breaker? At your age?”
Gwen could only shrug. “I can show you my—”
“Nah, nah, I got a nose for the truth and you reek of honesty something fierce. Now then, ms. Gwen the Breaker.” Gracie leaned in close, her entire upper body was on the table at this point, allowing Gwen to spot the great big bushy tail that was wagging slowly from side to side. “You looking for work?”
“Not in construction,” Gwen glanced towards the city proper for a moment and then towards the fields that lay beyond it.
“Well, there ain’t much here for a Breaker, former or not, save for some peace and quiet I suppose, since the toughest things around here are forest trolls, and they only spawn at level 30. Most other things aren’t much higher than 20, though.” Gracie continued to drum her fingers and then her smile turned borderline feral. “Ahh, that’s it isn’t it, you’re tired of all the killin’, fightin’, and all that other jazz; it’s written plain as day on that pretty face of yours, Gwenie.”
“You’re mostly right.” Gwen felt the tips of her ears burn. Was she that easy to read? Sure, there was the whole starting a farm thing, and figuring out how to make strawberry wine. “I’m thinking of becoming a farmer.”
“Ha! Is that so then?” Gracie slapped the table hard enough to make a stack of papers slide to the side. She leaned back and stood to her full height, which was a fair bit shorter than Gwen, all things considered. “You know what a good farmer needs?”
“No, I mean, I read up on it and—” She had a basic idea; The Words provided her with some information, and she had gotten a couple of books to look into it, as well as the Kingdom’s guidebook for maximizing farmers. But actual advice wasn’t something she had gotten.
“A good husband.” Gracie swept her arm across the table and gestured towards the large red-haired man that was currently unloading a cart. “That’s my grandson Arlo over there: he’s big, he’s strong, and if smarts were a stat then his wouldn’t get past 10, but he’s kind and he’s got a big heart, not to mention you’re his type and then some.” Gracie waggled her eyebrows at Gwen with a predatory grin that was no doubt egged on by the fact that Gwen’s face was likely as red as her skin used to be. “And by that I mean Tall and Busty. You’d have him wrapped around your fingers like that.”
“I—” She had traveled with prettier companions before, and had even seen marriage proposals like this in other small towns from overly friendly locals. Before, she could just growl and be done with it, but being on the receiving end was completely different. How did Fortune deal with it? Or Reverly? Or Brock? Wait, Brock was the one that proposed to half the females they met.
“I’m, uhh, not really interested in a husband.” Gwen half muttered.
“That’s fine, I got granddaughters too.”
“Ehh?”
Gracie let out a cackle that bounced off the mountains and even seemed to make the river ripple with laughter. She held up her hands and waved them about a bit before slapping her knee and letting out one last hoot. “I swear, you Breakers need to learn to live a little.”
For her part, Gwen just stared at the brazen older woman. She really didn’t know what to say to that.
“Especially for a Breaker your age,” Gracie continued and leaned back on her table once more. She grabbed what looked like a largely blank canvas and then tore the corner out from it before she began to scribble. “But that’s why you’re here ain’t it? To actually live a little?”
“Uhh, yeah.” Gwen shuffled her feet, feeling like a child getting lectured by an adult for the first time in well over a decade.
“Well, you’re off to a good start, now don’t mind this old woman trying to get her grandkids married to the first stranger to wander into town.” Gracie finished writing on the paper and handed it to Gwen with a kind smile and a sly wink. “Take this to the Wagging Tail Inn; my daughter owns the place. She’ll set you up with room and board before you bother to talk to the officials about setting up your farm.”
“Oh!” Gwen accepted the paper with both hands and bowed her head. “Thank you very much.”
“Oh, and my granddaughter works there; you’ll know her by the ears and the fact that she has rank 10 breasts.” Gracie let out another cackle. “And don’t worry, I doubt either of them will bother trying to marry you off to someone, so just enjoy your stay, and if you need anything, let me know.”
What in the Words were rank 10 breasts?
Was that a skill?
“Umm, can you tell me a bit about the officials of Valor’s Rest?” Gwen asked, and then felt her words stumble in her mouth as Gracie raised her eyebrow like she was wondering why the hell this tall, socially awkward oni was still talking to her. “I just mean, you kind of seem like you’re in charge and that you’d know.”
“Nah, I’ve got my construction company, my daughter’s the one that’ll know more, I’m too old and jaded to have an unbiased opinion on the lot.” Gracie waved her hand towards the city, “I’ll say that the Royal Delegate is an ass and the Mayor is an ass kisser though, but they shouldn’t cause you too much trouble if you show a bit of spine.”
“I see,” Gwen gave a small nod and shuffled the paper in her hand. She had met Mayors and Legates that had been a bit too self important, especially in towns on the frontiers where Breakers were likely to gather. Apparently that was just as common in sleepy regions like this one. “Thank you again, and I’ll be sure to come back once I find out where I want my house.”
“You do that, sweetie. Now get going, I gotta make sure these lugheads don’t screw something up!” No sooner had Gracie turned on her heel then she started to bark commands at whoever just so happened to be standing around.
The guard only offered her a small shrug and an apologetic smile as Gwen made her way across the bridge, and after a brief stop inside the gate house, she was given entry to Valor’s Rest. Many of the buildings were made out of a combination of mortar, river stone, and wood with roofs that all shared the same blue colored tiles.
As expected within the kingdom, the majority of the people she passed were humans, stoutfolk could be seen in plenty, tending shops or moving through the streets with carts of material that were being brought down to the water side. There was even the odd elf and more than a few oni like her, though they likely weren’t of the same clan as her, given their reddish skin.
She passed by the city hall, the largest building of the city that was equal parts fort and civic center: a common sight for towns built in regions that weren’t quite considered tamed. She’d have to stop by there tomorrow. For now though, her stomach was demanding that she head towards that free meal that was mentioned and her feet were dying to be put up.