HC:Pacifist | Ch. 189 - Addendum (Patreon)

Roth entered the crafting district as he studied the new post on the Union Collective’s page. It looked like in the short time that he’d been away shopping, the rest of the team had already added an addendum to the Union contract explaining the rules for crafting battles.

Addendum: Crafting Battles and Union Challenges

Crafting Battles:

In the spirit of camaraderie and fair competition, the Union Collective hereby introduces the concept of Crafting Battles. Crafting Battles are friendly competitions among Unionized Craftsmen designed to settle disputes, compete for orders, and elevate the overall skill level within the Union.

Occasions for Crafting Battles:

A Crafting Battle may occur under the following circumstances:

To settle a private dispute;

To compete for the right to an order;

As a challenge to enter the union.

Crafting Battles to Settle Disputes:

Unionized Craftsmen seeking to settle disputes may propose a Crafting Battle by submitting a formal request to the Union Collective. The request must detail the nature of the competition, the stakes involved, and the mutual agreement of both parties.

Crafting Battle for Order Placement:

Crafting Battles will automatically ensue when two or more Unionized Craftsmen express interest in fulfilling the same order. After an order is placed, a sign-up period begins. If more than one person vies for the order during this period, a Crafting Battle is automatically initiated.

Union Challenges:

In order to foster a dynamic and skilled Union Collective, a rule is hereby established to allow outsiders to challenge current Unionized Craftsmen. The victor of the challenge shall earn a place within the Union Collective, while the defeated party agrees to gracefully exit the Union.

Initiating a Union Challenge:

Outsiders seeking membership in the Union Collective may issue a formal challenge to any current Unionized Craftsmen. The challenge must be submitted in writing to the Union Management, accompanied by a processing fee of 50 silver, specifying the terms and conditions of the challenge.

Acceptance of Challenges:

Unionized Craftsmen are obligated to accept at least one challenge per month to demonstrate their commitment to the growth and competitiveness of the Union. Failure to accept challenges without valid reasons may result in consequences, as determined by Union Management.

Consequences of Union Challenge:

The Union Collective will supervise and facilitate Union Challenges to ensure fairness and adherence to the rules. The defeated party shall gracefully exit the Union, making way for the challenger to join the ranks of the Unionized Craftsmen.

Exceptional Circumstances:

Union Management retains the right to evaluate exceptional circumstances where a Unionized Craftsman may be exempt from accepting a challenge, provided valid reasons are presented.

Public and Private Crafting Battles:

Valid Crafting Battles must be public to foster transparency and fair competition. Craftsmen wishing to conduct a Crafting Battle away from public view must remit a fee to the Union Collective for approval.

Crafting Battle Resolution:

Crafting Battles will be overseen by appointed referees or a committee designated by Union Management. Although the involved parties can suggest one Unionized Craftsman as the referee, Union Management reserves the right to choose the referee. The outcome shall be determined based on predetermined criteria relevant to the nature of the competition.

Debts and Dispute Settlement:

Failure to fulfill debts or to follow through on disputes settled with Crafting Battles will result in expulsion and banishment from the Union Collective. Union Management will enforce the consequences in such cases.

This revised addendum is hereby incorporated into the Union Collective Agreement and is effective as of [Insert Effective Date].

He had to ask H if he was a lawyer, a paralegal, or something. He could come up with contracts with a snap of the fingers. As Roth looked over the details, he nodded approvingly. These battles would make the Union Collective more attractive to hardcore artisans who wanted to prove their worth and sharpen their skills.

In the future, if two craftsmen wanted to compete for the right to accept an order as it had been in the case of Rhapsody and Leanne, they could just settle matters through a Crafting Battle. Roth hadn’t thought of charging a fee for hosting battles, but he agreed with the measure. Serving as a referee in this type of event could take a couple of hours, and there should be something in it for whoever was hosting.

The extra fee for craftsmen wanting to keep their secrets hidden from the public was also a great way of assuring some funds for the union. Although Rhapsody and Leanne had seemed completely confident in displaying their skills to onlookers, there probably were artisans who didn’t enjoy revealing their secrets.

He also liked how they had made it so that these battles could be used to enter the Union. They ran the risk of the organization growing stale if they didn’t do something like this. By forcing players to step up their game and fight for their positions, they made a seat in the Union Collective even more valuable.

He sent a thumbs up in the chat to commend the initiative and dropped the idea of hosting a monthly tournament for each profession. Having a ranking for each profession could further fan the flames of competition and make people excited about joining the union.

Roth checked his map to make sure he was on the right track. He was on one of the city’s main avenues, heading toward the citadel. As he walked, a few notifications from the auction house trickled in.

Someone has purchased [Black Toxicologist Hood] for one gold in Hilsford’s Auction House.

It was a good feeling to have some money reentering his wallet. After buying everything he wanted from the auction house, he was left with only five hundred gold. He still wanted to pass by the Crafting Hem to purchase new recipes, tools, and supplies, so having that extra cash could go a long way.

Roth was surprised with how much stuff he had to sell in the auction house. For starters, there were random skill cards, pieces of equipment, and consumables that he received as spontaneous gifts from friendly factions, some of which were quite valuable.

There were also several items that he got to keep for himself after bartering between factions. For example, Mario asked for five [Swamp Corn] for one [Alligator Scale]. Roth had convinced Soros to throw one extra [Swamp Corn] into the deal. Whenever they traded goods, Roth came out of it with one [Swamp Corn] to himself. Having no use for it or other similar items, he just sold it making a profit. Finally, there was his older equipment and some more stuff he picked up as he adventured.

The hottest thing he had dropped in the market was the silk of the Blue Caterpillar, and there were already a few bids on it. One and all, all the junk he had left for sale in the auction house would conservatively go for no less than 30 gold, which was all money he could use and reinvest in useful things, which brought Roth to his current trip to the Crafting District.

When Roth searched for rides in the auction house, he found nothing. After checking the forums, he realized that pets and rides couldn’t be sold in the auction house. For that, one had to travel to Stable Street and meet a tamer or breeder; hence his coming here.

It has to be something atypical for him to already have two pets, and to be out shopping for a third one. However, since both his treeant colony and Lin had inherent skills that exempted them from being counted as pets, Roth had to make the most of it.

Lea, the queen of the Leafies, was still nurturing the first larvae in the colony. Once they underwent metamorphosis and became workers, they would share the load and care for the next generation of treeants. However, for now, they weren't really doing anything for him. As for Lin, other than looking cute, eating and burping, he did absolutely nothing.

The trip to slay the hive king was just around the corner, and he was looking for things that helped him now. He would find a ride that would help him travel faster or, more likely, run away faster.

As Roth left Crafting Avenue and entered Stable Street, his first impression was that it was a mix of the slums and the citadel. The memory of the slums came to him in the form of the smell of wet fur and manure. Even though it wasn’t comparable to the stench of the sewers, Roth considered whether he should change into his [Plumber Set] to cancel the stench.

Stable Street also reminded him of the citadel because of the many soldiers riding on the street. They sat on their powerful steeds in shiny armor, proudly sporting the insignia of the city. Horses made up the vast majority of the animals being ridden. They were kept spotless, except for the mark of the city atop two hills branded on their side. The horses trotted along with military precision.

Other than the horses, however, there were other animals. He saw a group of four soldiers riding the biggest wolves he had ever seen, and also one soldier riding a rhinoceros. It was no accident that the citadel was located so close to this street. The garrison of soldiers seemed to be the best customers out here. Supplying the garrison with mounts was probably the biggest business on this street.

As Roth looked at all the animals, he bit his lip. Coming here reminded him of that poor camel who had drawn a message on the ground on that first day he’d arrived in Hilsford. How many of these animals were slaves? Were any of them contracted? Why would an animal even willingly want to become a soldier’s mount, he wondered.

Roth had come here to find a mount. Even though there were a few mounts players could use from level 10, those were incredibly expensive and difficult to find. As a level 30 player, however, there was much more to choose from, and with choice came more reasonable pricing. Lin’s head poked out of the folds of his woolen robe, and looked around curiously.

“Is the smell making you curious?” Roth asked as he petted the little kitten. “Come, let’s find you another friend.”

All Roth knew about mounts, and rides was what he had read in Pegasus’s library. All of the suggested rides in their guide could be procured on this street. Instead of following the guide blindly, Roth wanted to explore a bit. He still had some time, and only getting the D and E rank mounts that Pegasus promoted seemed too little for him.

Not wanting to overthink, he just entered the very first establishment he landed his eyes on. It was a wide one-story building with dark-gray letters reading ‘The City Riders.’ The building itself had a simple, sleek architecture which reminded him of the citadel. Maybe that had been a conscious move on the part of the management to appeal to their military clientele.

As Roth approached the building, he discovered that the letters had been made of dozens of horseshoes nailed to a giant board. Several soldiers entered the building on foot but left riding steeds. Roth decided to check it out.

Going through the main door, his first impression was how clean the place was. Compared to the smell of wet fur and manure from the street, here it smelled of oil and leather. Saddles, spurred boots, whips, knight lances, and other military gear hung from walls in such abundance, that it took Roth a few moments to find that the wallpaper behind the items was dark green.

Despite the banter of the many soldiers chatting and the distant sound of neighing horses, the room didn’t feel echoey or noisy. The light in the room came from two roaring fireplaces placed on two opposite walls and from the many windows that gave a view of a vast paddock filled with white sand.

Thanks to his enhanced vision, even from here he could see several soldiers, leaning over the fence while admiring the trainers riding the steeds. At the same time, on the other side of the paddock, a talented knight made a horse trot, canter, and perform several elegant acrobatics.

It was only thanks to his [Farsight] skill and all the bonuses he had gotten to perception that Roth was able to see that, beyond the paddock, there was a separate building from which different stable boys left and entered with horses in tow.

At the four corners of the main lobby were counters where different staff attended to the soldiers’ queries. Seeing a few players at those counters, Roth followed their lead and approached. After a few seconds, one of the establishment’s NPCs came to him. She was a tall lady, wearing a neat rider’s hat. “Hello, adventurer. Looking for a ride, are we?” The lady spoke so loudly that it made Roth wonder if she was hard of hearing.

“That’s correct. I was wondering if you could show me around?”

Ch. 188 - Gourmand

INDEX

 Ch. 190 - The City Riders