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A Soldier's Life - 268 - Secret Depths Revealed
🕑 Added 2024-09-23 03:18:56 +0000 UTCChapter 268: Secret Depths Revealed
I let the men deal with their surprisingly mild hangovers in the morning. I had sampled the ambrosia on a few occasions while a sentry at Kraken Bay. It was a little sweet to my palate, but if you could get it cold, it was better than the best ale. It didn’t take much to get buzzed, and I had never experienced a hangover the following day. I would have to remember to refill the pair of canteens my companions had drained from the black chalice.
Ignis gathered the swords and earrings and prepared to make an offer for the smithy. Castile looked much better after a long rest, but her face was still filled with uncertainty. Leaving no room for argument, I told her, “Castile, you and I are going to visit a mage healer this morning. He is an elf and specializes in mages.”
Castile looked skeptical but changed into her cleanest clothes and joined me. The rest of the men were going to spend the morning on laundry and then register at the Adventurer’s Guild with Maveith showing them the sites. Last night, I had offered to come up with funds for Lirkin to purchase a small tavern or inn in the city, and he was going to scout his options. I guessed the cost would be similar to the smithy, so I would need at least another seven hundred gold.
I shouldered a heavy pack I had prepared for visiting the Elaro and left with Castile. As we walked through the city, Castile’s eyes and mind wandered around the foreign city. The myriad of races is what primarily drew her attention. I broke her daze by asking a question. “What do you plan to do now that you are free?”
“Free at a cost,” she murmured testily. She composed herself. “I can still channel aether. It is difficult to focus on casting true spells through the pain, but my spell forms on my core are more manageable. I will find solace as a tutor of magic or perhaps as a bodyguard.” The latter profession was spoken with derision. Her ability to unweave aether to prevent others from casting spells was one of the spell forms she had inscribed on her core. I assumed that was why she was considering being a bodyguard. Maybe she had planned for the others to join her in the enterprise.
“Why not the adventurers’ guild?” I inquired.
In a tired voice, Castile responded. “I am spent. Not just from being burnt. As a woman mage commander, I could not have a family until after my service was completed. Maybe now…” Her voice faded. We walked for a while before she spoke again. Her throat was a little tight. “Adrian and I…he always said after we had both escaped the legion.”
That was shocking news as I had never seen them be affectionate with each other. Castile chuckled, seeing my bewilderment. “Not with Adrian. We just planned to start families after the legion. He was always more of a paternal protector than a lover.” I nodded but didn’t want to discuss our dead comrades. We had reached Elaro’s villa, and I spent a moment explaining the flag and the nation of Milvanoris before we knocked.
It wasn’t long before we were seated in his study, and Castile marveled at the private library. “I see you have brought a lovely friend with you. Are you experiencing more symptoms, or is this a social visit?”
“My recovery is going well,” I said, as Castile's questioning look shifted from me to the elf. “We are not here for me today, but for my friend here. Castile has burnt her aether channels, and I was hoping you knew of a remedy.”
The Elven noble reclined, and his lips tightened. “Aether burn. There is only one cure, apex channeling essences.” Castile tensed as hope fled her. “If she doesn’t want to use her aether, I can shield her core as I have done for you. It will remove her ability to cast spells, but she will no longer feel any pain. It is a fragile containment, and attempting to use any aether will shatter it.”
“That is not an option,” Castile hissed moodily.
Elaro shrugged. The old elf looked sympathetic but not invested in Castile’s decision. “The only other thing I can offer is a draft that will numb your pain some. I don’t suggest it since it is addictive and also numbs your other senses as well. But if you are having trouble sleeping, it can give immense relief.”
“Thank you for your time,” Castile said, ready to leave.
“You are not alone,” Elaro consoled Castile. “I have seen dozens of mages in my time with burnt channels. If it is recent, know that you will adapt in time. The body is amazingly resilient, and you can overcome the pain with some mental training to push aside the effects and form spell forms normally.” I had only lost one point of potential and managed to acclimate to the burn, but I didn’t mention it in my present company because I would reveal that my aether burn was cured.
“Can you teach her?” I asked for Castile, who had a mask of despair.
Elaro exhaled slowly, “While I have knowledge of techniques, I am not a teacher.”
Ignoring his hesitance, I pulled a bottle of Elven red from my pack and placed it on the table to my right. “How many lessons would this procure?” I had planned to use the wine as a payment for a cure, but since no cure was available, the lessons would do.
Elaro licked his lips instinctively, and I could tell he had enjoyed the last bottle, weakening his negotiating position. “For you, my friend, three dozen.”
“Excellent,” I said, smirking as I added five more bottles, one at a time, from the pack. “So that is two hundred and sixteen lessons. Is that enough to learn the techniques?”
Elaro laughed at my bravado, and Castile quickly figured out where the bottles had come from by the dust coating them. “I figured I could instruct her successfully in thirty lessons, which is why I offered thirty-six.” He gestured at the bottles, “Do you even know the value of what you have dancing on the edge of the table?”
“I suppose this is where you are going to tell me I overpaid,” I said, laughing softly but not really concerned.
“Quite so,” Elaro said, smiling. He rose from his oversized reading chair and walked to the small table, and started cleaning the dust. “Each bottle on its own is worth a few dozen gold for the artwork and the preservation runes woven into the glass.”
He worked through the bottles as he talked, “The Caelorian Elves were master craftsmen, and the artwork has a deep meaning of the wine within—not that I can discern it without some research. The wine itself,” he paused, considering. “I couldn’t place a value on it. To a drunkard—a silver. To a human king or wealthy merchant, for the prestige of drinking wine over a thousand years old—maybe a hundred gold. A few fold ofof that to the right elf who can truly appreciate it—and afford it.”
Castile was looking on, somewhat numb to the sums being mentioned, and I could see her thinking and read her thoughts. We had left behind thousands of these bottles in Caelora. “What would you pay for a bottle?” I asked.
Elaro sighed, “While I am not destitute by any means, I do not have extensive funds. My income is minimal, and as I informed you on your last visit, I frequently assist refugees from my defunct kingdom.”
It didn’t take me long to make an offer. “Are there those in Gramney that could pay the price? Would you be willing to serve as a broker for four bottles and keep the fifth as your fee?” The sixth bottle was for Castile’s lessons. I added quickly, “Of course, leaving the true origin of the wine out of the equation.”
Elaro’s eyebrows danced in amused thought. “Perhaps. The Ambassador from Esenhem, for one, would pay.” He started to nod, “I agree to your offer.” We shook our wrists on it.
“You can give the gold to Castile,” I said, stepping back after we shook. Elaro seemed eager to peddle the wine, and I assumed it was a way for him to gain some prestige in the court.
As we were walking back, Castile said, “You didn’t have to do that.” I didn’t know which part she was referring to—the lessons or selling the wine.
I shrugged as we walked, “It’s fine. I still have fifty bottles in my space. I will leave a dozen more with you.” I didn’t notice that she had stopped walking for a few steps. I walked back and collected her. “Lirkin is staying behind to watch over you, Castile. He is looking to purchase a tavern or inn. You can facilitate its purchase with the coin Elaro gets for you.”
“What else are you hiding in your space?” She said, trying to hide a smile at my loyalty and generosity. I may not have been able to solve her aether burn, but she was being put in a comfortable position. I didn’t want to give her false hope, but Maveith’s homeland was supposedly flush with Manticores, and those creatures had yielded channeling essences for me. I had no idea if I could gather the amount required to heal Castile or even if my path would take me there so I didn’t mention it.
I handed her a hot meat bun, which she juggled for a moment before biting into it. Even though no one was near us, I sent an earth pulse out to confirm and reveal anyone invisible. Satisfied, I continued talking. “I have collected quite a few odds and ends. One of them I was hoping for your help with.”
“This is good.” She said, in regard to the meat bun. “What do you need help with?” Her mood had changed drastically, and she had some hope for the future. I wasn’t sure about revealing the full power of my dimensional space to Castile, but she could keep my secrets and already knew I was an otherworlder.
“A First Citizen Mage,” I said as we walked.
She thought about it for a moment. “It shouldn’t be hard to dispose of the body. Just bury it in the woods. Why do you need my help?”
“The problem is, she is still alive. I just don’t want Benito and the others to know. I am not sure if they can keep it a secret.” Castile had stopped walking again, the meat bun hovering in front of her mouth. I had to walk back and collect her again. Since she was paralyzed, I continued talking normally, “Her name is Selene Greco. I was tasked with killing her by Centurion Sergius when I was a Hound. I don’t think she will be happy or cooperative when I bring her out.”
I waited for Castile to process. The street was fairly empty, but I sent out another earth pulse to ease my paranoia. It was best to move the conversation inside. I ushered her into a small tavern and got a private booth. It was still early morning, and the place only had one other customer. I ordered drinks and food for us and waited on Castile’s disbelief to catch up with the conversation. She eventually spoke. “You have a mage in your dimensional pocket—alive?”
“Yes. She is bound, poisoned, and sedated, so she can’t use her magic, but yes, I do.” Some fried crispy bread was placed in front of us. It was a bit too greasy, but I took a bite, and it reminded me of garlic bread.
Castile was slowly processing the implications. “Then…” I nodded before she finished. “And when…” I nodded again. “Why did you stay in the legion?”
I shrugged, keeping my voice low. “I am just an ignorant otherworlder, Castile. If I thought I could have run, I would have. Konstantin kept telling me it was a death sentence, and I believed him. Now, what are we going to do about the mage?” I didn’t want to discuss my dimensional space further, and she understood that by my tone.
Castile ate numbly for a time before returning to the topic of the mage. “The Grecos? I heard something about the orcs killing Baron Greco,” Castile thought. “They had a daughter, but I don’t know if I have ever met her. My company cleared one of their deep silver mine shafts of kobolds four or five years ago. The Baron was a reasonable First Citizen for the power he wielded and even entertained the company for two days at his estate to thank us.”
“Duke Octavian and Centurion Sergius had them killed to get their silver and gold mines. So, you have something in common. You both hate Duke Octavian.” Castile was staring at me like she didn’t know me. I just sipped on the sour ale and waited for her to catch up.
“If you can…then did you kill creatures with it?” Castile guessed. I was surprised she had made the connection so fast.
“Yes. The bulette, manticore, and wyvern. It is also how Maveith and I survived the dungeon, but we had to bloody our weapons many times as well. Yes, he knows.” It sounded like I was boasting, so I felt the need to add my failure too, “The summoner was too strong and resisted, so I had to kill him the hard way, but I killed his ice drake that way.” As I said it, it felt good getting the secret off my chest.
I could see Castile had an avalanche of questions. I tried to answer them as quickly as I could. I wasn’t surprised when she asked if I had kept any food from the company in the Caelora. I admitted I had the summoner’s apprentice pack, and there was a few days of food in it, but I didn’t know about it until after I entered the dungeon.
Castile slowly acclimated to the new reality of what a monster I truly was. Her disposition had changed greatly in the last few hours. “I will take care of your mage problem,” she affirmed after I answered her bevy of questions.
“Great. I will leave her with you when we leave. She has a pack of gold and silver trinkets that should placate her on getting them back and finding herself alive. Her ring and amulet were given to Centurion Sergius if she asks about them.” I had recovered the aether shield amulet from Corvus, but I was not returning it—I considered it a transportation fee.
Another thought occurred to me, “Her two legionnaires may come looking for her, Helena and Sylph. I gave them a clue she might be here, but I don’t know if they puzzle it out.”
I let Castile finish her meal as she needed the calories. “Are you ready to return to the others?” I asked as Castile still looked at me like she didn’t know me, but at least the initial shock had worn off.
When we got back to the suite, it smelled foul as the men had laid out all the gear in their packs and were repacking with new gear and rations they had purchased at the Adventurer’s Guild. Drying clothes hung from cordage strung through the room, adding to the unpleasant odor.
A Guild medallion hung proudly from their necks as they worked. “Look, Eryk.” Benito held up his token. “They let me join! Mateo thought they might not because there was a height requirement, but there were three dwarves in the common room there, so I knew I was tall enough!” Mateo hid his amused snicker.
Maveith’s deep voice cut over everyone’s conversations, “We got everything we need. Do you want us to get horses as well? I don’t know how to ride.” I considered the question. There were large mounts for someone of Maveith’s bulk, but I was uncertain of the cost or availability.
“I will check with the portal office this afternoon. If there are no scheduled portals to Artiria, we will get everyone a mount,” I announced. It appeared I was going to be in charge of our little band—or at least I was going to be the one paying our way.
Ignis returned a short time later, and she had liquidated the platinum earrings and runic weapons. She had a tentative agreement for the smithy she wanted in place. I thought about waiting for her to craft everyone armor, but I knew Maveith had waited long enough. He had been patience by I could see the wear of the delay weighing on him.
Everyone had piecemeal leather armor to go with their black legionnaire greaves and vambraces. It made us look like proper mercenary adventurers. It looked like they still had their runic weapons from Caelora, but they had wrapped their hilts to hide their true nature.
When Lirkin returned, I took the opportunity to leave and check the portal office. I left some silver for them to get food from the tavern below. Maveith joined me as I left the inn. “We are leaving soon?” he asked as we walked, handing me a pouch. I took the pouch and checked it, curious. It contained several gold coins. “Your half of the payment for delivering the message from Sanco to the Guildmaster here.”
“You can keep it.” I handed it back to him. There were about twenty gold in the pouch, by my estimate. “We will leave as soon as we can. We still need to find an orc guide, but we can do that tomorrow. If we can’t find one here, we can get one in the Caliphate.”
Maveith talked as we walked, telling me about his morning and their time in the Guild Hall. Maveith had paid for the others to register, and there had been no issues other than a few people recognizing their accent as Telhian. He got the impression that Telhians were not well-liked.
When we reached the portal office, Fortuna was smiling on us. A tentative portal to Artiria was scheduled for four days from now. The cost was five gold per person and ten gold for a horse. We were definitely not getting any mounts, and it was time for Ginger to get used to my dimensional space.
Maveith was confused when I only paid for passage for six people. “Is Ginger staying with Castile? Who is the sixth person?” He asked as we walked back to the inn.
“I cleared some space for Ginger. The sixth person is the orc guide if we find one. I didn’t want to risk the portal getting sold out,” I explained the number of tickets. The number of people was limited for each teleport, but we had gotten lucky as the portal registry had recently opened. There was a chance the portal would not occur if the Elven displacement mage didn’t arrive though.
“Ginger will fit? Will I fit too?” Maveith asked more in speculation than as a question.
“Maybe one day we will find out,” I said, laughing menacingly.
“You will not cage me, foul mage,” Maveith said in mock worry as he moved to the other side of the road in jest.
Comments
HappyNoms
"I gave them a clue she might be here, but I don’t know if they puzzle it out." -> if they will puzzle it out. "He had been patience by I could see the wear of the delay weighing on him." -> by should be but, patience should be patient.
NovaZero
He had been patience by > patient*?
Erick Thiemke
multiples
Erick Thiemke
corrected
Erick Thiemke
edited....although I like Greko better
Lindasm
In book 4 Greko is spelled Greco.
Lindasm
pulse to ease my paronia……pulse to ease my paranoia Spelling
Lindasm
Not sure of the meaning of this sentence….A few fold to…
Trevayne
Thanks for the chapter.
Karnnie
I am really enjoying Eryk stepping up and taking charge. Time to get on with adventuring life.
Sloth
I’m glad he told Castile here. I’m a little annoyed he is still so paranoid despite being out of the empire. His level of power will eventually increase to the point that fame is inevitable. I hope author intends to take the story in this direction. Eryk will eventually become a world power, and will face the threats that come with that level. The secrecy on the specifics of his abilities is just good sense, but hiding from his close allies is pointless and just stifles the story. I would be annoyed if the author attempts to cripple main characters development so that they can keep the story going the way it has been going all this time.
hrs
he can always teach his inner circle english. castile knows he is an other worlder, but maybe he just tells the others he is descended from one who ended up in that country down south. or someone his family knew taught him this "strange language" as a cover story. i always thought a good angle to take was his parents were traders and he ended up orphaned down there and grew up a street kid following a trade caravan, hence his knowledge gaps about his homeland
Enk
the dungeon scenes without soap were memorable, sorry hehehe
NightRider
In the next chapter, when they bring Selena out of Eyck’s storage, I would love Castile to suddenly realise and then question Eyrk, why did he need the elven healer need to shield his core. And then berate him for being such an ignorant imbecile once she learns the reason.
Gravonhaft
“Her two legionnaires may come looking for her, Helena and Sylph. I gave them a clue she might be here, but I don’t think they realized it.” Didn't he throw 'Selena's ashes in front of Helena? Though he did hint Gramney is safe.
Zurko
I doubt it'll be something like 50 over their resistance since the strength of 1 to 50 does not equal 51 to 100. I'm not remembering exactly but the higher the number the more weight each point is. so 60-70 might be as strong as the entire 1-60 before it.
Zurko
yeah it would kinda suck if more died since there so few already. if eryk is not hiding his secrets anymore then if one of them gets injured he can store them in his space until they get a healer. I think they'll make great adventures, they are so experienced. the stuff they did in the legion was basically what adventures do.
Silver Beard
4 days- might be enough time to restock on mouthwash...
Erick Thiemke
edited 265 and 268 to remove the dimensional space spell from from being revealed to Elaro. Added a few earth pulses to check on invisible spies in 268
Erick Thiemke
i will try to remember. but elven soap is so much better
Enk
he still needs to buy some soap
Silver Beard
That last line... it's not if Mavieth will fit, but will his sister... if she refuses to be rescued?
Silver Beard
That's essentially what Eryk is doing. taking care of the ones he's leaving behind on his mission? Concierge~! He's making the way for those he leaves behind.
Lemes
Not me! lol
Thresher
I appreciate it. I think it makes perfect sense for him to be confident in his abilities, like he showcased during his time on the ship with Dee. However like you just said, he should still be cautious about revealing the contents of his dimensional space and keeping his conversations regarding it secret. With how long he has spent hiding behind lies and deceit regarding his origins and abilities, I can understand why he’d want to let loose a bit. But he should still understand the need for caution, especially speaking about such things in public. As you’ve suggested, I think scooping out the immediate area before having a conversation like that, and possible lowering his voice would be sufficient. Of course he can’t disregard scrying spells, but hopefully he will in the future as you said. Perhaps with a spell form of his own or artifact. As always, thank you for the chapter and for hearing me out, despite how much I nitpick… 😅
Erick Thiemke
I can add some details on the edit. Maybe an earth pulse before talking to Castile to detect invisible people. I agree the MC has become more loose with his secrets after killing Aesop. It was a fundamental shift in his psych. He has a lot of confidence in his abilities now. Rereading the exchange with Elaro, I may go back and cut out the reveal of the dimensional space. Elaro knows he has a lot of affinities but not if any of them are spell forms
Silver Beard
@hrs Likely he will take a break after the Orc 'incursion'.. I'm sure the author has something planned with that pic he's using. Count his lucky stars she's not sharing his bed. lol.
Erick Thiemke
The was a LOTR quote
Silver Beard
chapter title: Preparing part 1. Obvious it's going take more than 1 chapter before they set out. If the mage had been released and ginger stashed I would have called it removing distractions
Jordan
Got it. Makes sense from that perspective.
Jordan
Please make the changelings have an “oh s**t” moment when/if they see him in the dungeon! Would be hilarious!
D375
If Raelia is going to be Eryk's long term love interest then him being a master smith would go over a lot better in polite society than former legionnaire/hound/assassin/adventurer. Presumably, Eryk should have more than enough time to master smithing considering his long lifespan.
Salvo
Elaro is diplomat and a centuries old healer. He doesn’t want the wine for money, but for influence. Having that amount of expertise, and a random Goliath comes to your house about a sick person, and he goes without guards? Then, he had week, knowing of a powerless 14 affinity mage, and didn’t sell him, charge him with a false crime, like the empire did. But the empire already views any mage as its property. Renna was gonna be a broodmare if she didn’t die in the front lines. So maybe it’s the empire that’s evil, not the people it destroys.
Thresher
He shielded his core before he knew about his dimensional space. And the mc has talked to this dude what, 2 or 3 times? I don’t know about you but I wouldn’t trust someone after just briefly taking to them 3 times. Elaro saved him because it was his job as a doctor guy or whatever, before he knew about Eryk’s wealth. Point is, Eryk should not trust someone like that. I mean how long did it take him to trust Castile? It’s been what, years and it’s only now that he’s telling her the remainder of his secrets? He shouldn’t put his faith into someone like that just because he shielded his core before he knew about Eryk’s wealth. Regardless of if he was telling the truth about the wine’s value or not. He might have been telling him that to see if he could get a reaction out of Eryk, to try and probe into how much he has. Which Eryk so kindly said while walking in the open with Castile…
Erick Thiemke
A gold coin is maybe 10 weeks wages for a normal city worker, not a ground breaking sum. As for Elaro. He sort of saved the MCs life. If he hadn’t shielded his core, the MCs aether core would have collapsed. He also was under no obligation to tell the MC how much the elven wine was worth or why it was worth so much. He could have just been like, great 226 lessons it is!
Thresher
He slid a gold coin to the jailer. And he handed over a bunch of valuable stuff to Ignis. Who then went on to sell it. Ignis previously didn’t have much, so It’d be weird for her to suddenly come into some wealth. People would ask questions, and no doubt people would ask where she obtained said things. I doubt she would snitch, but people could still investigate and link it back to Eryk or his homies.
Thresher
Yeah Elaro… An old elven mage that would have a decent motive to kill him. Not only to recover lost elven culture, but also to support his lost nation. That’s like dangling extremely valuable ancient Egyptian relics in front of the leader of Egypt. Without Eryk having anyone to back him really.
hrs
how far along would being a smith take place? based on what he has been up to so far he seem more inclined to be an indian jones type adventuring scholar or relic hunter. at least for like a book or 2 after this one.
hrs
main reason to go back is to rescue his bff goblin and start feeding it essences. there will be a decent amount of infighting in the empire for awhile. the best time to go grab resources, such as several hundred years of hoarded artifacts, is before power is consolidated. also its been previously mentioned and shown that much of the empire is basically frontier so getting in and out wouldnt be impossible. or he could be forced to go back on a rescue or to kill off someone who is an impending threat. if konstantin's boss or the head hound start trying to verify there arent any loose ends from the coup. later on once he is fully forgotten would be the perfect time to go establish himself with a legitimate identity.
Erick Thiemke
I have no idea why people keep saying he flaunting his wealth. He arrived from Esenhem and checked into a nice inn (2 gold/night). The only other person (outside his confidants) he showed wealth to was Elaro and that was with the elven wine.
Lazarius
The spoiler was too big 🫣
Thresher
Maybe he might be smart enough to know if a human could hear or not. But what about a catkin? Or the other races in that city? Also, I’d be willing to bet there is some kind of magic artifact that could enhance one’s hearing. There is already the equivalent of binoculars, and night vision goggles, which enhance your sight. Who’s to say there isn’t something similar for hearing? I’m fine with him telling Castile his secrets, as I’m sure most of your readers are. But revealing them in public after he has already flaunted his wealth and is in an unfamiliar city is stupid.
Erick Thiemke
SPOILER: I think the plot is going to take him back to the Shimmering Labrynith to mine the Mithril there once he becomes an arcane smith
Deliver roo
Why should Eryk care at this moment tho? If he is interested in damaging the empire and stealing its resources he can go back in a few hundred years when he will probably be a powerful mage. Now he is believed to be dead by an empire that has got more pressing matters and he is finally free to roam around the continent. The others might very well be all dead by the time he feels like going back, unless someone gives him a very good reason to act otherwise.
Sean Kauffman
I think in previous chapters said the first legion were responsible for the stat readers and creating a lot of the essence gatherers but is there any kind of spell form to do the same? Not sure if under convergence but could someone cast as a spell to harvest essence and then use a spell to improve assimilation?
Erick Thiemke
or better yet, i will add something in this chater referencing his time in Kraken Bay using the jade chalice
Erick Thiemke
i will try to add something in n earlier chapter. I figure he was watching Kraken Bay for a month he would have used it a few times in book 4
Erick Thiemke
not bad but it doesn't quite feel right
Erick Thiemke
changed this in the master to read deep silver mine shaft...I imagined the mines as being in the same place and they went down and touched the Endless Dark. "You fear to go into those mines. The dwarves delved too greedily and too deep. You know what they awoke in the darkness "
Erick Thiemke
he would have failed if he hadnt recently increased his space magic to 101
Erick Thiemke
the MC is smart enough to know if someone is close enough to hear. as for magic scrying...that can be done anywhere. maybe he will eventually get somethig to prevent it
Thresher
Well if Eryk was just a normal guy, than yeah that’d be fine. But dude is probably richer than many nobles. And there’s no way there isn’t crime or corruption in other countries. Even in this one he has already bribed the jailer guy, so the government can’t exactly be trusted here either. They’ve already shown that they’d look past the law for a single gold coin, what would they do to him for the promise of 100s if not 1000s of gold?
hrs
since castile, viridia, and the first citizen are all in gramney with common cause against octavian means they could run a resistance / espionage group. the tavern and ignis' smithy could serve the same function as a legion hall. this would work as a good plot point to get eryk back to the capital later on in order to recover his stash and maybe snag some high end resources. essences, artifacts, stuff to eventually help castile, etc that got lost in the coup or can be stolen from octavian. when konstantin shows up again maybe he will provide some extra info and motive.
Enk
My bad, Zyna addresses this much earlier: such spells must be used as a spell form. Shame.
Enk
Why is only one solution to Burn ever mentioned? It just happened again in this chapter. The 'convergence' spell 'maximise essence' which Eryk has imprinted - is it not castable by a mage? All the others are, iirc, even when some are far superior imprinted rather than cast (like the dimension space one).
Enk
I think the author might be pointing out that that sort of paranoia, while appropriate in the empire, isn't, here. That's how i'm taking it, anyway. Be quite funny if he was wrong...
Chachi
really hope their group does well as adventurers. kinda would hate if more members died. thank you for the chapter
Jordan
This chapter mentions the Grekos as having multiple mines. A paragraph from the final version of chapter 231 says they only had one gold and silver mine. See below: “Traitor!” She spat the word in disgust, anger flaring. “She was the one betrayed. She was told Orc Pathfinders killed her parents, and she was being sent to the war front to fight the Esenhem elves. She should have been raised to a baroness and taken over her family’s estate. Duke Octavian wants to control her family’s gold and silver mine.”
Salvo
You know, I forgot about Selene’s Aether resistance. Castille just assumed she was dead. So the SIZE of the body wasn’t the shock. In her reasoning, it never crossed her mind he could move a live person… and Selene was a first citizen mage, a lot of apex essences in her diet. What’s the minimum to do that? 50 over their resistance?
Thresher
I mean I’m just saying I’d be extremely paranoid talking about anything like that. And with him basically flaunting his riches everywhere he goes, pulling out rare items and whatnot like with the elven mage, he should be more careful is all. At the very least he shouldn’t be talking about his secrets while strolling down the street in the middle of a city or in a tavern. It’s careless and could get him killed if someone wanted to find out just how much he held in his dimensional space. I honestly wouldn’t even blame that elven mage doctor guy for killing Eryk. He so easily pulled out 5 bottles of wine all worth 100s of gold. And the elf would have the motivation too as he wants to help his devastated nation or whatever. So 100s if not 1000s of gold could go a long way in helping his people.
Jordan
Regarding your point about Eryk talking about his powers, I see your point. It’s hard to live while constantly worrying about people listening to all your conversations though. He’s out of the empire and no longer participating in the emperor killing plot anymore. Information security isn’t as big of a concern. There might be agents listening in, but that could always be the case.
Jordan
I noticed that too. Eryk storing ambrosia kind of came from left field. I know it was mentioned in the prologue with the elf, but giving her a canteen of it doesn’t really make sense as he learned about the chalice later on in the story’s timeline at the adventurers guild. When originally getting the chalice the team speculated that it was whiskey, but they didn’t know for sure which, I’m assuming, was why Eryk had the chalice identified.
Thresher
It’s a little ridiculous how Eryk talks about some of his most guarded secrets so openly. Especially since he should know of many spying magics like Castile’s All Seeing Eye. That was how she originally found out about some of his secrets. And already in this city he has probably put a bit of a target on himself. I mean he literally just spoke to an extremely old elven mage that seemed to have a degree of influence. I don’t doubt someone like that couldn’t hire someone with a spell like Castile’s to spy on him. Hell, the mage might even have his own spell like that. I mean he was literally talking about his dimensional space and it’s capabilities in somewhere as open as a tavern. Seems kind of careless to be speaking about such things in public. Also it’s kind of insane how rich Eryk is. He should easily be able to settle down in a small kingdom somewhere and live a lavish noble lifestyle if he wanted. Find a wife and start a family. At least after he helps Maveith out. Thanks for the chapter.
Jordan
I really enjoyed the dialogue this chapter. Will Eryk be getting items inspected more often now that he’s outside the empire? It feels like the risk related to it has gone down.
Juan Magallon
“Preparations” for a title?
Faa Diallo
Sounds good
Erick Thiemke
No, there were two edits to that chapter
Faa Diallo
Wasn't Sylph put in storage. Pretty sure since Helens left in a huff.
mehmed zepcan
Need longer / more (ꏿ﹏ꏿ;)
Jordan
“There were large amounts for someone of Maveith’s bulk”. Amounts -> mounts
Silver Beard
He needs the orc's input...he's rushing a contract he'd got no business accepting on a rumor! Sorry Mavieth- there's reckless and there's stupid... and I'm thinking stupid big time atm
Ivan Kanewske
Meant to say in one of the last chapters, You never set up a timer even intimated that Eryk was making the ambrosia whiskey, it just come out and he has some canteens, May be nothing, but may want to something to the effect It is worth making the whiskey once a week when aether and time is available
Silver Beard
I miss town builder-
Andrew
Thank you!
Alias
Love seeing Eric and Castile’s relationship evolve. If Eric can ever get his gosh dang hands on some Shaping Essences maybe Castile can teach him true spells.
Erick Thiemke
3rd of four for the cycle. Working on World Sphere next. The POV winner was Renna but that will be the epilogue. I think there will be a POV for Konstantin soon as I need to explain some things...
