blacksmithoftheapocalypse
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1270. Freewheeling
🕑 Added 2025-02-17 01:16:47 +0000 UTC“Didn't you send anyone to get rid of them?” Mina asked bluntly, stealing the words from Seth and Fin who had both opened their mouths to ask something similar.
Seth may have thought differently if these people came to ask for an alliance or shelter, but they had simply set up camp on their territory, without as much as asking. Cultivators like that were practically pests.
Even if they had settled somewhere in the No Man's land to fend for themselves, the blacksmith would have felt uncomfortable leaving them alone. But they came here to benefit off of Minas Mar's work for free? They couldn't allow this. Otherwise, these people would flock to Urth and soon they may be swarmed by hostile forces, encroaching on their own home turf.
“I did, but many of the adventurers I sent to find them didn't come back. When I asked the Oathguard to look, they got into a few fights, but they couldn't locate the sects,” Senior White explained
Even the deity was powerless to change something that happened outside the scope of her power or influence. The snakelets only work within the city. So the city was safe, but the outside was potentially lawless.
Seth wondered if this was also happening in Little Gamma. As a matter of fact, the Pythian village did not stop existing after the tournament. It had become a hub where cultivators and players mingled and traded. if it was really Senior White's policy of allowing cultivators to enter, wouldn't the same be happening there, too?
“Why didn't you take care of it?” Fin asked innocently. “After all, you are the guardian. It should be easy for you to find them in the mountains and crush them, right?” the fairy brute suggested, balling her fist and punching the air to reinforce her statement.
She was right. Senior White was powerful. At least as powerful as Python. There shouldn't have been a problem for her to go out and find the sects, however, the look in her eyes following Fin's statement was enough answer to Seth.
The bard had gone through the difficult process of learning to read people a little better and the way the white snake looked at her priestesses and suddenly had her gaze swerve over the city at the foot of the tree told him a lot. Together with her past, it was clear.
“What if something happened while I am outside hunting those sects?” she asked with a wry smile, looking down at her hands, too ashamed to face them. “They trust me. I- I don't dare leave my sheep behind once again...” she mumbled almost inaudibly.
In her world, she had cast a mighty spell to protect her people from the curse of the mad sun god and was forced to recover afterward. During her sleep, Natina had invaded the city under her protection and turned the residents into a horde of undead. Although she seemed collected at the time, it seemed that she had always blamed herself for this.
Although Senior White was recovering from the trauma, it was still there. Even if the thought that something could happen to the tree station in her absence was absurd and unrealistic, she couldn't stop worrying about it.
At some point, there may come a time when she could overcome her past. Maybe she would even need a nudge to do so, but this was not the moment. Not for something as trivial as pests. The bard gently placed his hand on her shoulder.
“It's okay. You are the guardian of this city, not the surrounding lands. I will ask Leana to send someone later,” Seth encouraged her. Since he didn't feel like ruining their vacation the moment it started, he didn't say that they would take care of it. he would push that on some of the other slackers, once they got back home.
Fin and Mina followed his gesture, playing their hands on Senior White's shoulders. Out of context, comforting a depressed goddess may have seemed like something weird and out of place, but in this moment Senior White was just someone who was hurt in the past and needed some moral support.
“Thank you...” she whispered with a tiny smile.
“Would... would you like to talk about them?” Fin asked, slightly hesitant to ask. Asking someone to speak about their loss always had a chance to turn into a disaster, however, this was not one of those times.
Following Fin's gentle lead, Mina, and Seth helped turn the conversation to Senior Whites past. Not about how it ended, but about the good times. As the snake deity shared memories of her home with them, the mood gradually improved again. They talked until the sun was close to the horizon and they remembered that they had a reservation at a restaurant.
“Thank you for the conversation.” it was a weird way to phrase it, but they could feel genuine gratitude from Senior White's words. It was probably the first time she had reminiscing about the happy moments of her past, instead of trying to push it all way.
As they descended from the temple, back into the city, Seth suddenly spoke up.
“Maybe we should hire a guild therapist.” Although they were able to help Senior White a little, thanks to Fin's empathy, White wasn't the only one with a terrible past. Technically everyone on Urth was broken in some way.
“A therapist?” Minas asked while Fin looked a little clueless.
“You know, a professional to talk to, like we just did to help Senior White,” They needed a little help to remember what a therapist on Urth was.
It was safe to say that everyone on Urth could need one, but those guys could go to literally any still-existing therapist. The reason Seth suggested a guild therapist was confidentiality. It was clear that Senior White felt a lot better after talking, but who other than Seth and maybe the lords of Minas Mar could she do this with?
A goddess couldn't just speak about her secrets and pasts to her priests or someone random. Neither could the high-ranking members of Minas Mar, for that matter. All of them may have needed some sorting out, but only a few people to turn to.
“That doesn't seem like a bad idea, but that is not the kind of topic to talk about now,” Mina agreed but reminded him that they were having a vacation. Instead of lingering on the matter much longer, Seth quickly called Leana to have her send someone because of the sect matter.
Once the call was done, the three took the next snake ride to the vicinity of the Petal Dew Restaurant, walking the rest of the way. Using <Lifestyle Magic> and the quick-change function of the system, they easily fixed their attire and appearance, according to the atmosphere of the establishment.
It was a restaurant, but the line at the entrance waiting for a free spot was comparable to a nightclub, with the exception that everyone in this line oozed an aura of old money. The trio simply bypassed them. They had a reservation after all.
Inside, the first they saw was the large main room. The decor was classy and elegant. One could almost feel how expensive everything was. Filling the room with even more odor of money were the customers. The room was full like a can of sardines, expensive and classy, but choke-full.
The receptionist was the typical image of an older gentleman with slightly sparse hair. When he asked for their name, Seth simply placed his hand on his book, showing the sigil ring. “Someone should have made a reservation for us.”
His eyes focused on the ring for just a split second. “Of course. I hope you are okay dining in the VIP section?” he confirmed. After agreeing, the man personally led them to an even more elegantly decorated place than the main hall was.
There was a smaller number of tables, with a server dedicated to each. This place was much calmer with fewer people. There were even three empty tables, one of those was theirs. Seth was not surprised by the expensive atmosphere but by the presence of someone he did not expect to see here.
“Seth?”
