PenguinKills
patreon
Chapter 172 - Departure
🕑 Added 2024-11-05 21:15:40 +0000 UTCThe wave the other day went smoothly, like the previous four had, and now I was back to managing our growing populous. Honestly, it was a bit of a shame they only came once a month to break up the monotony of governing.
It gave everyone a chance to get real experience fighting and gave me the chance to hone my battlefield commanding. Not all who wished to be guards were as combat-experienced as the rest.
The waves were a stark difference from how I remembered them. Instead of the Heralds of death I knew them as, they were just another thing to manage among my list of growing responsibilities.
The frequency with which they arrived varied compared to before. They used to be like Swiss clockwork with their consistency, but that didn't hold true anymore. I supposed the regularly scheduled and curated tutorial waves had different requirements to the ones we now faced.
The waves, as our tutorial was meant to show if it wasn't a death trap, were there to test cities. Or pylons, as one went with the other now. They kept the 'unworthy' from controlling pylons, as one information book pretentiously stated.
They were designed to make sure whoever owned one had the strength required to defend it. I wasn't sure what the 'great System' needed these tests for, but it seemed to be a requirement for a lot of things.
Tests to evolve, tests for pylon ownership, tests for everything.
What dictated the strength of the waves sent, or 'tests', was the grade of the Planet and the tier of the pylon. On higher-tiered planets where land was more valuable due to higher mana density, the tests were harder.
Our planet being on the lower end of the Grades, as it was newly integrated, didn't have that hard of waves. As it increased in grade, that would change but so would our preparedness to face them.
The second reason our waves were... so tame, was because we were still only at the outpost level. Being on a lower-grade planet with the lowest-tier pylon resulted in facing waves with the average level in the 30s.
When Tracy detailed the wave they faced when placing their pylon, she said they faced level 20 monsters, which told me the increase was slow but consistent.
It was hard to tell with only a few waves as data points, but an increase of 10 levels over 9 months didn't sound all that bad right now. That equated to about a dozen a year.
The book where we got most of the information didn't state whether or not owning multiple pylons affected difficulty or not, but that wasn't a big issue for us. I had no desire to own more than one.
Maybe adding a few smaller Villages if we grew big enough, but I didn't wish for a continent-spanning kingdom. That sounded like way too much work. I would leave the conquering to others, as long as they didn't come for mine.
That thought made me wonder if any conflict had already broken out. I knew human-on-human conflict had already, the Adventurers and Knighthood in my hometown were a testament to that, but I wondered if true war had anywhere.
It had been a year, maybe it had.
Abigail's entrance into my... office? broke my thoughts away from that. I hesitated to call it an office because that wasn't what it was made for. It was my bedroom first but transitioned into an office when I needed it during the day.
While the outside of the Castle was mostly finished and the inside walls were complete, the rooms still lacked furniture or anything to break up the wash of grey stone everywhere.
I was one of the few who chose to move in already as most decided to wait until the furnishings were done.
"Any messages among the new arrivals?" I asked before she had the chance to sit down on my bed. With me occupying the only chair in the room, it was the only other place to sit.
The missing presence on the battlefield yesterday was still a sore spot, even though I knew he would leave. After the snow melted and the temperature started to rise, Austin decided it was time.
It was hard not to think about how we split ways.
~~
The Castle was finishing up nicely and it would be complete soon. My mood was high and it felt like nothing could bring it down. Even the small petty infractions some partook in wouldn't sour my mood.
Even the melting snow couldn't bring me down, even if others saw that as a good thing.
Austin was out talking to a few people before going out on another scouting run. He was packed down heavily with gear and I suspected this would be a long one this time.
He had been essential to getting the lay of the land. He covered ground at a harsh pace and recorded the levels and mana type of everywhere within miles of here.
While the map was great, it didn't exactly spell out what every color meant in terms of mana affinity. Guesses were still out on what the teal swallowing up Virginia was.
The base four were easy, deep brown for earth, radiant red for fire, ocean blue for water, and a swirling grey for wind. A few others were obvious, whitish purple for lightning, gunmetal grey for metal, a bark-tinted brown for wood, and verdant green for nature.
Not to mention my own mana type, the icy blue.
He had done good work on recording anything of importance near where we were and I was glad to have him. His profession made things a lot easier on our more normal scouts.
Just when I was thinking of doing something nice for him, he finished talking with his mom and brother, Carrie and Conner, and started walking up to me.
He didn't normally need to get my approval to go on scouting trips so this must be a really long one if he felt the need to inform me before departing.
My eyes missed their looks of sadness as Austin approached me.
"Going out again, man? I think you've seen everything in a 25-mile radius." I joked.
Instead of laughing and firing something back, he just looked intently at me. It was then that I noticed what he had packed. Not only was he wearing his armor, his full armor, but he also had both of his spears with him.
I had made him a new one after we settled in and planted the pylon that had replaced the one he used from the tutorial. It was much better than his old one as my skills had improved tremendously between forging the two.
He had purchased the materials to make it with his Reward Points and it turned out fantastic. Vincent and I both pulled out all the stops in the forge to make it the best we could and I even learned a new Rune just for the project.
My Runesmithing skills had advanced rapidly after construction broke ground and they translated well to making weapons. I advanced passed only being able to put one Rune on a piece of equipment and could now squeeze multiple into them depending on size.
Even on a smaller piece like a sword, I could now link a few together. The material had to support it, of course, but it wasn't my lacking skills holding me back anymore.
For his spear, I used Runes of Durability and Piercing, along with a more difficult Rune of Radiance. That Rune was much more difficult than the other two and took me a while to get down without messing it up.
It was also the one I specifically purchased for him as I knew it would work well on his weapon. Durability and Piercing were no-brainers to put on a spear, but the last one was what made me proud of the piece.
Vinny handled the mana infusion as his affinity was closer to Solar than mine, but I put a lot of work into forging him the best weapon I could. Vincent's Spirit Fire was even used and pushed it to an even higher grade. It leaned heavily toward the fire side of Solar instead of light, but it still boosted both when the skills were channeled through it.
Other than his spears, his pack was bursting at the seems it was so full. It wasn't just a long trip he had planned. It was an indefinite one.
That realization caused my good mood to evaporate. Just when I thought nothing could bring me down, the world found a way to prove me wrong.
"You're leaving," I said softly as the realization dawned on me.
It wasn't even a question as it was clear to me now. I knew he would eventually, depart to see the world, but I hadn't thought it would be so soon.
He nodded, "You don't need me anymore. The area is explored thoroughly and the castle is almost finished. My presence here isn't required anymore."
"And if I ask you to stay anyway?" I questioned, but it wasn't hopeful.
He exhaled audibly and shook his head. I knew what he would say but I had to ask it anyway. "What would I do that I haven't already? Range further and further out?"
That was true. He had already expanded our range significantly. Tying him here to keep expanding it wasn't the best use of his time. Nor did I want to chain him here unwillingly.
He had a heart to explore. During our journey North was the happiest I had ever seen him and I wasn't going to keep him from that.
"Don't go out there and die on me," I said and punched him lightly on the shoulder.
"That wouldn't be too bad of a way to go. Venture off into the sunset, never to be seen again." He said wistfully, looking up at the sun, "It has a certain mystique to it I like."
I couldn't help but snort, he had always had a flair for the dramatic.
"What?" He looked at me questioningly, "Not all of us wish to go out in a blaze of glory like you. While that is still a good way to go, disappearing into the sunset has its charm."
"I didn't think our departing words would be on how we wished to die," I said with a laugh.
"Hey, you were the one who started all the death talk." He defended.
I decided not to respond and gave him a big hug instead. His enormous bag got in the way but I gave him a squeeze anyway and a pat on the shoulders.
It would be a while until I saw him again.
"Don't be a stranger, eh? You'll always have a room here to come back to." I said.
"I know, I know. I'll come back to regal you in tales of my adventure." He said sarcastically with a smile as we broke apart.
"I look forward to hearing them." I answered, and then added before it got too chummy, "Now go on, get. See the world or whatever you wanted to do."
Nothing more needed to be said so he turned and left.
Before he got too far, I shouted a final question, an afterthought I should have asked first, "Where will you go?"
He turned as he walked backward with a great smile on his face, "I don't know." He seemed happy that was the answer, "Wherever the Sun takes me."
I stood and watched him depart for longer than I would admit to.
~~
Ever since his departure, people had been steadily trickling in from Northern Canada. They claimed a spear-wielding warrior pointed them in this direction if they wanted safety.
Not many survived the Winter this far North, and not many lived up here originally, but enough did to boost our population.
Occasionally, the new arrivals carried messages from him if he felt like leaving one and they were always the first I asked about when new arrivals appeared.
"Not this time. They used to live near Winnipeg before arriving here and had no new information that we didn't already know." Abigail answered.
Finding out where the arrivals were from was a good way to follow along his journey but it wasn't the only information they brought.
With every new arrival, we tried to get anything new out of them. We had already learned a great many things depending on what kind of tutorial the person experienced.
We were keeping a list of all we knew and there were a few that stood out. The one detailing Dungeon breaks was especially insightful on how to keep them from happening.
But one captured people's attention more than all the others, though, and only a few had experienced it. Something they called the Blight.
Rumors went wild when they first arrived and word spread, but it highlighted that there was more to prepare for than we had initially thought.
Comments
Demonlord
Thanks for the nice chapter π It's sad that Austin is gone but also nice for him to follow his dreams π I hope we can have some interlude szenes of his adventures
James Faulkner
Seems like undead are incoming?
Buck
The Blight? Sounds very undead oriented. TFTC!
Alexander C Hyde
"I know, I know. I'll come back to (regale)regal you in tales of my adventure." He said sarcastically with a smile as we broke apart.
Alexander C Hyde
I advanced (past)passed only being able to put one Rune on a piece of equipment and could now squeeze multiple into them depending on size.
Alexander C Hyde
That thought made me wonder if any conflict had already broken out. I knew human-on-human conflict had already, the Adventurers and Knighthood in my hometown were a testament to that, but I wondered if true war had (happened) anywhere.
