The Axe Falls -CH8- (Patreon)

Over the last three weeks, Nick had done a great deal, yet also very little.

Waking up every morning he went to the guild, picked up quests for his party, then met them at the entrance to the dungeon. Went down into its depths, killed hordes of monsters and dungeon animals, then came back out.

Only to repeat the process the next day, and the next day, and the next day. Until Sandy had reminded him that he only had a handful of days left on his tenancy.

Sitting in his room, Nick was very much at a loss. The sun had just set and he’d spent another day toiling away to nearly no end.

Erica, Tom, and Randal, had all reached level nine at this point.

Whereas Nick was still only level four across his four classes.

With every level up the experience they got from what they were fighting became less. For Nick, that didn’t matter from the beginning since it would always be divided by four.

I really think it would be better to remove some of the classes at this point and just focus on a fewer number.

“And again, I disagree. It’ll take us longer, but every single level up means much more to us. Instead of just one hit point per level we get four. For mana we get two, our strength lies in our bank of points,” argued Lucian. “We can always leave the group when they get their promotion and go to another city.

“At this point, we’ve established a presence here, a name, and a life. The soldiers that do check our amulet don’t really even care anymore. They missed their window to catch us with such an easy ploy.

“Not to mention being the friend of Erica Fash has certainly given us an advantage. We could ask her to write a letter of recommendation for us.”

Grimacing, Nick didn’t really know what to say to that. He was still rather uncomfurtable with Erica being an “enemy” and even receiving a quest to kill her.

Lifting his head he called up his status window and it’s extended information.

Nick wanted to argue with Lucian but he wasn’t wrong.

He’d gone out a few times by himself and challenged Hob-Goblins. They took him a bit more work since he was alone, but he did get more experience. The experience in combat was paying off as well.

There had been a few mistakes he’d made with the Hobs that had cost him some hit points. A cost that would have nearly killed him if he had the normal amount.

He really wanted to argue, but Lucian was right.

“Okay, fine,” Nick muttered aloud. His frustration was starting to get the better of him. His growth was severely hindered and only getting worse. “But they’re going to hit their promotion soon. Level ten isn’t that far off for them. What do I do then?

“They’ll want to know why I haven’t hit it yet, with them, or how long it would be, would they not? Any answer I give would need to be something I could follow through with.”

“Well, that’s fair. Though… I wonder,” mused Lucian. Then the dragon cleared its throat and began speaking again. “What if we just leave the party? Claim we won’t be able to go as often as we have other things we must attend to.

“Our room is going to run out shortly and it’s about time we looked into buying a manor. We do need a manor if we want to be able to truly set down roots. Perhaps one that’s in one of the surrounding smaller cities rather than Ashcroft?”

Nick let out a soft grunt at that.

It wasn’t a bad idea and would give him a plausible exit for the moment.

While they’d established a life to build from, they did need to start getting their foundation together. Or at least, the parts that they could build upon.

Having an heir seemed like more of a problem at the current time than something to solve.

“Okay,” Nick after a few seconds. “Let’s do that. A manor home. We can let the party go, they can go level up, and move on to the next area. We can just work on our own from there.”

“Quite right, Sire,” agreed Lucian.

“I think uh… I think I’ll just leave them a note at the guide,” mumbled Nick, not wanting to confront Erica and the others directly.

“As you like, Sire,” agreed Lucian, but Nick could hear an undertone in the words. He didn’t need a translation or explanation either.

Cowardly.

Yeah, I know.

I’m still just a prince, not a king. I can be a little cowardly, can’t I?

Lucian said nothing.

***

Wandering through the small city, Nick felt considerably better than he had previously. Much more at ease and feeling as if he belonged.

This felt a lot more like a really big village to him, rather than the overwhelming press and push of Ashcroft. At times it was simply far too much for a simple country bumpkin like Nick.

Because that’s what he actually was.

A country bumpkin that was just barely starting to get used to city life.

It didn’t hurt that this was further to the south-west which was considerably more flat. Much like the area he’d grown up in.

Wandering down the main boulevard Nick looked to each building he passed. Peeking through open doors and reading signs that hung above entry-ways. So far he really liked what he saw of the economics here.

Everything had a upwardly trending feeling to him. That each and every business was just starting to succeed. At that frightening moment when you are about to crest a hill and start going down the other side.

Produce looked fresh, there didn’t look to be over-worn clothes on the inhabitants, buildings had fresher looking paint than he was expecting, and there was signs that any wear that showed was repaired quickly.

This seems like an ideal place for us to start.

“Indeed. Now all we need is to see if there’s a local guild branch,” said Lucian. “They’d likely be able to tell us who to talk to, to buy some land or a home. Either would do, really.”

Nodding his head, Nick stopped in his track then looked up the boulevard in one direction, then down the other. His pole-axe was resting comfortably on his shoulder and against his dimensional pack.

The only thing he’d left in his room was the key after posting a note to Erica at the guild back in Ashcroft. In the end he’d fled without saying goodbye to anyone.

Not far away were two young women who held a basket each. They looked to have just come from an open-stall market of some sort given that they had produce and foodstuffs in them.

“I beg your pardon, miss’,” Nick said, addressing both women. Both women eyed him as if only now realizing he was there. Dipping his head to them as soon as they met his eye he held open his left hand in front of himself. “Again, I beg your pardon for troubling you, but do you perhaps know if there’s a local adventurer’s guild branch here in Dayton?”

The women looked to be processing his words and if they wanted to respond to him. They both had a head covering that hid away their hair and wore clothes that covered them from chin to foot. To say they were dressed conservatively was an understatement.

“Down that way,” said a woman, pointing back the way Nick had already come from. “Stone building, the sign is a sword put through a book. You can’t miss if it if you’re looking for it.”

Nick knew exactly what building they were talking about. He’d seen it but had no idea what to think of it. There’d been no store front, objects for sale, or any customer’s inside. All he’d seen of it was a single desk and a person reading a book behind it.

“You won’t find work here,” said the second woman in a somewhat cold tone. “Best you go back to Ashcroft.”

Raising his eyebrows at that, Nick inclined his head to the women. He wasn’t quite sure how to respond to them since the second woman’s comment had clearly been somewhat hostile.

Curious.

I wonder why there’d be no work, yet have a guild branch office.

There’s something off about that.

Turning in place, Nick marched back the way he’d come. He had no time to waste.

Reaching the stone building, Nick entered through the open door and went right up to the desk. Setting the spiked butt of his pole-axe to the wood floor he waited. The guild clerk had yet to look up from their book and seemed as if they truly hoped Nick would walk away.

Inspecting the man, Nick figured him to be in his middle-age. With brown hair cut short and pulled back and pale-blue eyes that were no longer moving. They’d been going from line to line, but were not locked in place.

“If you’re not going to read the book,” Nick said, doing his best to curb his tone to something less mocking. “You might as well put it down and talk to me. Your eyes aren’t even moving.

“Unless it’s a picture book. Maybe with some fun illustrations? You got any hot Elf’s in there?”

Leaning over the desk Nick moved in close to the clerk and looked to the book’s interior.

It was all words.

“I-I-I beg your pardon!” said the clerk, snapping the book shut and glaring at Nick.

“Oh, sure. No worries. I pardon you for your service so far,” Nick said and stood back up, making a gesture with his left hand as if he were throwing something away.

“Perhaps we could try with less sarcasm, Sire?” pleaded Lucian.

Ugh. Fine.

“I was wondering if there’s any work,” said Nick. “I just came from Ashcroft and was thinking of setting up a home here. I’ll be going back and forth rather routinely.”

The man blinked several times at that, cleared his throat, and set the book to the side. Turning partially to one side he grabbed a small stack of papers from underneath the desk and then set them down on top of it.

“Here’s everything we have right now,” said the clerk. “We don’t get too many adventurer’s coming through here. I don’t think I’ve had someone come in for months.”

“Yeah, not surprising considering that I was told to leave by a nice young woman outside,” muttered Nick, picking up the papers. “Real friendly place here.”

The clerk’s mouth became a flat line then he sighed with a shake of his head.

“Some of the population here in Dayton feel that the adventurer’s guild just grinds up kids and spits them out,” said the man, not meeting Nick’s eyes. “That or just prepares them to join the army. It’s not like it isn’t true in either case either. As soon as you hit a certain level and start moving about the country side, or going to the unregulated dungeons, you’re putting your life at risk.

“A lot of young dumb kids who think they’re stronger than whatever out there, never come back. They leave places like this and nothing is ever heard of them again. Try not to blame them. If anything, pity them.”

Nick wanted to argue with the man, that he wasn’t responsible for others, but let the words die unspoken. There was no need to say it. It wouldn’t matter.

Instead, he picked up the papers and started to sort through them.

“Huh, more work than I expected,” Nick said casually, moving through them one by one. “Maybe I should buy a house here. Who would I talk to about buying some land or a home?”

“Buying a home?” asked the clerk as if he were surprised by the question. “No one. Far as I know, no one is selling right now. Land is for sale though if you want to talk to the local count. He has an open hearing on the third day of the week. As is the case anywhere though, all land or building purchases have to get his approval though anyways so you’ll end up in front of him regardless. Not to mention you’ll never really own the land. Just the legal right bestowed upon you to live there. The king can always rescind it, but the count can’t.”

Really? How draconian.

“Not really. It’s always been that way. Your ancestors were the same,” countered Lucian.

Fine. Well, tomorrow is the third day of the week. So that’s handy We’ve gotten some luck on our side at the moment.

“I’ll take these two and… this one,” Nick said, pulling out three pieces of paper. Two were quite easy and looked like it wouldn’t be too bad.

Gather certain herbs in the north-west, hunt and track a pack of wolves that’d moved into the area and were going after live-stock, and do a patrol along the northern-perimeter that came up next to some open and untamed lands.

There had been reports of bandits though more for a number of people who didn’t arrive when they should have.

Handing the three out to the clerk, Nick was determined to make this place a home for himself. The city of Ashcroft would be where he hunted when he wanted to move forward, but he also need a place to build his resources.

These were two separate things since the dungeon couldn’t provide those.

“Right,” said the clerk and turned away from him. He headed to the back of the small building, likely to record the information.

***

Walking through the open fields of grass, sparse trees, and the occasional low hill, Nick couldn’t deny he was feeling better. His home and his life there had been uncomfortable to say the least. He’d been persecuted, wronged, and shunned, but it was still his home.

Where he was right now reminded him of that a great deal.

Unfortunately, he hadn’t been able to find a single hint of the wolves. They’d either eluded him completely, or were a fabrication of someone’s over-active mind.

About the only thing he’d managed to do was find the herbs.

“Wolves and bandits, neither to be found,” grumbled Nick. Walking along and looking from one extreme horizon to the next. Out here the world was quite wild and had the look of an ever expanding green and brown ocean.

Endless.

About the only thing he could see at all of civilization was a single shattered and burnt down husk of a cabin. At some point someone had tried to live out here in this vast nothing.

“Imagine doing all that work out here just to have your house burn down and be left with nothing but a chimney. Geeze,” Nick muttered.

“Would you really want to find the wolves?” asked Lucian. “Sire, a pack of them could very well be too much for us. It isn’t that they’re powerful, but that they could be numerous.”

“I mean, it would give me a chance to use my caster skills,” argued Nick. “Keep a number of them at bay and engage those that get close.”

“You’re truly under-estimating them. Your only saving grace will be your health pool.”

“That’s fine. I’m banking on it. It’s my health pool and a valid strategy.”

Lucian said nothing more to that and went silent.

Nick didn’t bother to try to engage him further in conversation.

Reaching the burnt out cabin Nick did a circuit around it and found that this wasn’t anything recent. It’d been out here for a number of years.

The remains long charred and whatever had remained gone to rot. All that stood was a stone chimney that was blackened and looked somewhat decrepit.

Setting his pole-axe down against it he grabbed hold of the stones. Nick then gave it several violent shakes to see if it would fall over.

After finding it to be rather sturdy, he instead hooked his fingers into a gap, and then clambered upward. Up until he reached the top at which point he turned and looked out across the fields.

In every direction was grass. Grass at high as his knees in most spots though also up to his hips in others.

“This is pointless. Trying to find anything out here like this is-”

Nick paused in mid sentence.

Distantly, past a few clumps of trees and a hillock, he could see a shallow bowl in the landscape. A depression that ran along the ground in a way that would hide it away from anyone walking along.

Inside it was a small camp of what looked like very low tents. The type you slept in and little else. Interspersed throughout the tents were people who looked to be sleeping and resting.

Laying low.

From what Nick could see from his vantage point, they were doing their best to not be seen from anyone. To remain hidden and let anyone who came through the fields to pass them over wtihout ever noticing them.

Oh ho. Would they be our bandits?

Trying to activate his Call to Account skill Nick found it didn’t respond. Whoever these people were, they were too far away for him.

They were out of range.

“I would imagine that’d be them, Sire,” said Lucian. “There would be no reason for anyone else to be this far out and hiding as they are.

“Well, other than run away slaves or refugees.”

Nick shook his head. He was fairly certain these were the bandits he was looking for. Even from this distance he was could feel that they were his targets.

Okay. We’ll make this marker from the burned out cabin. To the west is the road that leads to the south-east. We’re not that far from it. Maybe a few miles?

There’s also the river.

When we trek back that way we’ll need to move due west. Mark the road or if we go east, the river, accordingly and go give the guild the information.

“Honestly, I would expect the bandits, if that’s what they truly are, are moving from depression to depression,” said Lucian. “I would imagine they know of a great deal of them. They’re quite ideal for hiding, after all. If they use these lands as theirs, they have the advantage.”

Nick nodded his head, then clambered down from the chimney.

Lucian was right of course. It was very likely they did know of other locations.

But that was all assuming they were the targets.

Everything hung on that point.

Mentally marking the direction he needed to go, along with the position of the sun, Nick began to walk to the base. He needed to confirm if they were his target, then he could back out and leave it to someone else.