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Salt and Blood - Chapter 66
🕑 Added 2024-11-05 12:11:34 +0000 UTC<< Chapter 65 | Table of Contents | Chapter 67 >>
1.66 - Hasty Farewell
You’re always at the most vulnerable right at the beginning of a journey. Physical, spiritual, or mental—it doesn’t matter. Taking the first steps is always harder than the final ones.
-Excerpt from ‘Gospel of Raggath’ by Bishop Gormont, founder of the Wandering Clergy
Rose had never felt as relaxed as she did right now. Wearing a comfy bathrobe provided by the inn, she reclined in the dining chair and sipped on a mug of a rich and sweet hot drink.
The manager had called it ‘cocoa’. It was apparently a native delicacy of Zoria that grew out in the jungles. It was sweet but also a little bitter, thick and milky.
Some spices had also been added to it, making it almost intoxicating. The warmth spread through her body and she couldn’t stop herself from letting out a sigh.
Last night was intense. Trent had taught her a lot about stealth and more importantly, how to make people do things they didn’t want to do.
Felix was wolfing down an assortment of grilled meats and freshly baked bread. She could’ve sworn the boy had hollow legs with the way he was able to eat.
Trent twirled a dagger in his hands and kept staring at the door every few seconds. He was probably worrying about whether Yasmin would turn up or not.
They’d kept their end of the bargain and now it was down to her to follow through. Nasar was a picture of serenity, perfect posture as he sipped on a cup of tea every now and then.
If there was one thing Rose strove to emulate from the older man it was his refined manner and the way he took everything in stride without breaking a sweat.
Trent was charismatic, but he had a way of surprising her that was often hard to keep up with. Whereas Nasar seemed to have an answer for everything and shared it with a gentle care reminiscent of her father.
Just when she was about to snap and yell at him to stop shaking the whole table with his fidgeting, the doors swung open and Yasmin strolled in with a beaming smile on her face, emerald eyes shining. Trent leapt from his seat, almost knocking her cocoa from her hand.
“Someone’s excited,” giggled Yasmin, flicking Trent on the forehead as he ran up to her.
“You took your damn time,” he moaned, taking his coin pouch from his belt and moving towards the reception desk.
They had already packed everything they’d brought onto land with them—which didn’t amount to much after selling most of it. All the supplies they’d purchased would be delivered directly to the quays.
Rose had managed to sell all of the salamander glands, keeping just one of each type in reserve in case she found a way to use them. She wanted to experiment a little more with the crafting skill. It would be useful to know how to make her own equipment while they were at sea.
In total, she had earned a total of 1 gold coin and 36 silvers. It wasn’t world shattering wealth, but it was the first coin she had earned entirely on her own. The start of her own hoard of loot.
After paying the wonderful lady at the desk and thanking her for the stay, the group left The Golden Cannon and made their way towards the Clissolt Quays where their ship was docked. They were eager to set sail.
Other than collecting Yasmin, they had little business here. In fact, after the run in with the governor, getting the hell out of the country was likely the best option.
He didn’t seem like the type to share the embarrassing incident—those kinds of men valued their reputation most. However, staying in the city he was in charge of didn’t seem like a smart idea.
***
Crates of orange and red citrus fruits were piled up by the ship, along with barrels of fresh water and a few smaller boxes containing spices that Nasar had purchased. The dockhands were more than happy to help them load Liberty in exchange for a few coppers.
Halfway through their preparations, they noticed the governor approaching the quays. Accompanying him was a pair of guards and the unnerving butler, who gave Trent a filthy look.
The man knew what had happened that night, but seemed to be under orders not to take action. At least the governor knew how to keep a promise.
However, there was no reason for the man to come and see them off in person. Something odd was going on. He smiled when he spotted Yasmin, but when he saw Trent’s withering glare his face drooped.
They’d made an impact. Rose noticed that while around half of the workers present seemed excited to see the governor visiting, the other half had sour frowns.
This was helpful. If the man had overwhelming support from his countrymen, then he would perhaps be a lot more difficult to keep in check.
It didn’t take much longer for them to finish loading the ship. Felix and Rose boarded and started scampering around the deck, rigging the sails and getting ready for departure.
Nasar had disappeared into the kitchen to organise the food they’d obtained. She suspected that was just an excuse to not have to deal with the governor and Trent.
While the man spoke with Yasmin and Trent, she sat against the mast and pulled up her status. Until now, she’d been quite haphazard with her skills. Rose threw herself into every situation that came her way and didn’t really think about how best to improve her abilities.
On this next voyage, she wanted to select the particular skills that she valued the most and aim to improve them as often as possible. That way, she would be able to earn traits quicker and hopefully complete her profession sooner than if she went with the flow.
Name: Rose Everblue
Race: Human
Occupation: Apprentice Scholar 19
Title: Apprentice
Available Titles: Murderer, Apprentice, Quintessential Skill, Ambitious Harvester
Bound Items: Sunsplitter 51
Skills: Cleaning 12, Reading 12, Fishing 21, Swimming 10, Writing 16, Butchery 10, Cooking 7, Herding 2, Focus 16, Drawing 17, Sailing 15, One Handed Weapons 5, Blades 14, Pistols 11, Firearms 5, Unarmed Combat 2, Endurance 7, Precision 6, Arcane Attunement 5, Light Attunement 6, Stealth 8, Athletics 10, Toxin Resistance 2, Appraisal 1, Climbing 1, Crafting 1, Dual Wielding 7, Arcane Resistance 1
Traits: Sensitive Line, Deft Hand, Good as New, Tunnel Vision, Endless Inkwell, Quick Consumption, Knot my Problem, Reliable Duelist, Steady Slash, Smooth Strokes, Agile, With the Grain
The first thing she did was equip the Quintessential Skill title. Despite Apprentice improving the speed at which her profession levelled up, she suspected that having its composite skills develop faster would ultimately result in quicker growth.
Plus, the new title would also give a much wider reaching benefit, allowing her to increase all of her skills faster and not just the ones related to her profession. Given that her profession wasn’t tied to a lot of the things she found herself doing as a pirate, the decision made a lot of sense.
During the stay in Clissolt, the only skill she’d ended up levelling was Stealth. The governor’s guards weren’t particularly competent either, which meant that it had only gone up by 3 levels.
One of the reasons she’d left home was to escape the shackles laid down by Emerlan Isle. Following her parent’s footsteps wasn’t her dream, but after the battle with the sea serpent she realised that her love of Fishing went beyond familial obligation.
They would need to catch their dinner while sailing anyway, so she would have plenty of opportunity to practise. As they went towards the deeper, more dangerous oceans, Rose hoped that larger prey would be available.
The first trait for drawing had been potent enough that she wanted to pursue the skill for more reasons than just her love of sketching. Her dexterity had been unusually good for the past couple months.
It always had been, but there was something about the trait that went beyond bolstering her ability to hold a pencil. Her main combat skills—Blades, Pistols, and Dual Wielding—were also obvious choices.
As they encountered stronger, faster, and deadlier opponents, Rose would need to improve to match them. Finally, the arcane skills, especially Arcane Attunement. They fascinated her and the allure of wielding the power of the world itself was intoxicating.
Her mind made up, Rose stood up with a determined expression and made her way to the bow. The first thing she was going to do was start drawing.
Alongside the mysterious yellow crystal Yasmin had given her—that was supposed to help her draw landscapes—the marvellous woman had brought along a horde of art supplies.
Rose was eager to test the new pencils. The one she’d brought from home had a lot of sentimental value, but it was almost too small to fit between her fingers.
She could keep it, but she had a better idea. Considering one of her focal goals was going to be mastering Fishing, she decided to toss the pencil into the sea.
Closing her eyes, she said a silent prayer to Sylack. Rose hadn’t forgotten the divine touch she’d felt while battling the serpent. In a strange way, her faith had only grown stronger since deciding to leave home.
As she opened her eyes, she heard a splash. Unlike the soft splashes that usually accompanied whorls, this one sounded like a crashing tsunami accompanied by a thunderstorm.
Not only that, but the whorl itself was bordered with gold. The words seemed to impose themselves on the air itself, carrying a weight that was… Divine.
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