Chapter 123

Chapter 123



Quest: A Steady Hand



Primary Objective Ensure Region 14s Survival

Secondary Objective I Establish Short-Term Defenses

Secondary Objective II Establish Trade and Alliances with other Regions

Secondary Objective III Uncover the Region Luminaries (1 of 4)

Secondary Objective IV Discover the Secret of the Wraithwood

Secondary Objective V ???

Personal Objective Remain unidentified by other Users.

Threat Level: ???

EXP GAIN (L)

Time Limit: Before the Transposition Event

Reward: Class Specific Boon.

The rest of the day passed quickly. But there were some growing pains. At first, the construction crew was clearly irritated, both by having to redo sections of the region barrier and by Iriss presence. Like the rest of my family, Iris wasnt used to mincing words. If there was a problem, shed comment on it immediately. She was clear and up front about what she wanted, and that rankled them.

After the initial negotiation, tension climbed so high there were multiple times I thought Id need to intervene, doctors warning be damned.

Thankfully, that was unnecessary.

Because Iriss personal debut left an impact.

Iris spent a lot of time on a sketch for the barriers. Made sure there were supports in the correct places along with other functionality thanks to Gideon Fenberry, an NPC architect who lived in our building.

Its not very pretty, Iris said, studying her drawing. She seemed to be growing more comfortable speaking aloud. There was a pencil smudge on her chin, and her hair had grown frizzy with the heat.

Doesnt have to be. I replied nonchalantly, still studying the details of the most recent quest Id received. The secondary luminary objective caught my eye.

Normally, Id loathe the apathy towards creativity, Gideon said, shooting me a curious side eye. But considering the scale of this project, your brother is correct.

He was a bit shorter than average, maybe a half-inch shorter than me if I were to guess, and a bit stuffy. His blue office shirt was wrinkled, but still tucked into his chinos. Large-glasses framed his round face, and I had a feeling they were prescription. The only noteworthy element of his apparel were the vibrant magenta, yellow, and cyan vertically segmented suspenders.

Iris placed her hand on a nearby felled tree and muttered under her breath.

Looky there. Our mascots communing with nature again. One of the many men in orange vests milling around snickered.

That helps, thanks. Iris patted the tree in appreciation and picked up her pencil, then began to draw excitedly.

I glanced over her shoulder. No one had managed to recreate Iriss ability to communicate with the trees. My guess was that it had something to do with her class, and that her connection to the materials themselves were heightened.

Can you Iris started to sign, then stopped and spoke aloud to the man who had just cracked a joke. Can you help gather leaves?

For what? The man looked at her like she was losing her mind.

I was worried. Iris didnt deal with conflict well. With this degree of hostility and pushback, I wouldnt have been surprised if she shrank into herself. But whether it was due to the urgency of the situation, or just plain determination on Iriss part, she didnt back down.

For materials, Iris said. They dampen magic. Magic usersalong with artillery spellsare the biggest threat to us, according to Users Ive talked to.

And by Users, she was referring primarily to me.

Iris continued, If we integrate the leaves into the wood itself, it should go a long way towards protecting us.

And if one of those wizards can fly? The man challenged. Dont know if youve noticed, but there are people just flitting around up there.

Iris glanced at me.

Well cross that bridge when we come to it. I mouthed. There werent many fliers. Only a half-dozen or so in the sky at any given time. It came without saying that wed need other defenses. This was barebones. A foundation for everything that would come after. I didnt like that the regions were all walling themselves off.

I wondered, absentmindedly, if I was being baited. Then dismissed the notion. Gideon was smart, not above getting his hands dirty, and most importantlypatient with Iris. If hed been more like Miles, Id be far more suspicious and hesitant to bite. But he seemed too socially awkward to be manipulating me intentionally. And even if he was, he clearly knew what he was talking about.

I sighed. You affiliated?

He blinked. Im accredited.

Do you have a guild?

Oh. No.

Before I could talk myself out of it, I pulled up Kinsleys contact card and sent it to Gideon. Reach out to her. Message, not voice. Shes swamped right now. Tell her Matt recommended you for membership, and explain what you can offer.

And what is it that Im offering? Gideon asked, his eyebrow furrowed. You know Im not a User.

Heres what Im thinking. Youve seen what Iris can do. Take on my sister as an apprentice. Teach her at a college level. Before he could argue, I held up a hand. Shes not stupid. Anything foundational you can think of, shes probably already learned. Keep in mind you likely wont be her only teacher, and manage the workload accordingly. In return, she helps with improvements you want to make around the region, as long as Kinsley green lights whatever it is you have in mind.

Quick point of order. Gideon cleared his throat. This is the Kinsley, is it not?

Yes. Unless theres another Guild Leader by that name Im not aware of.

Is there any contract? Gideon asked, his eyes narrowing.

Ah. Hed been to the open forum, or at least had interactions with a guild like the Local Relief Effort. Explained why he still hadnt joined up with anyone.

No contract. Ill leave pay negotiations to you and her. I waved him off. There were too many irons in the fire to try to manage things at a micro level. Id trust Kinsley to handle the recruitment. And more importantly, to get one of her mercenaries to investigate Gideon.

Even if he seemed well-meaning and wasnt triggering any red flags, there was no world where I trusted my sister to an outsider without due diligence.

/////

By the time I returned to my penthouse, I was spent. Between the physical exhaustion that came with being injured and the hell of drinking the recovery potions, it was hard to keep my eyes open. Sae was nowhere to be seen. Her guest room door was locked shut, no light emitting from beneath the doorframe. Probably asleep. Shed be just as exhausted as me, if not more so.

And she wasnt the only one.

Mom was passed out on the couch. Ellison had kicked open a recliner and fallen asleep watching a movie with the volume muted. He opened one eye to look at me as I came in.

I gave him a half-wave and the eye closed, as if hed only woken to confirm that nothing was amiss.

Gently, I placed Iris down on the loveseat perpendicular to the couch my mother was sleeping on, and pulled a plush blanket from the hallway closet to drape over her. She didnt stir at all, further confirming my suspicion that shed pushed herself too hard.

When I thought about it, I found that my reticence to live here had diminished. Iriss walls likely had something to do with it. I made a mental note to talk to the building super in the morning. From what Kinsley said, there were plenty of available rooms and the building owner seemed ecstatic to dole them out to us. Id need to talk to them, whoever they were, sooner rather than later.

Wed lived cramped together in an apartment for too long already.

Now that we had options, they deserved their space. Iris would probably still live with mom. That was the best case for both of them. My sister would be able to keep an eye on mom, and tell me if her issues started becoming problems again. And she wouldnt be alone.

Ellison was a different story. I wanted him completely separate, on a different floor. Id thought about it comprehensively. The elevator required a keycard, which meant itd be easy to track his comings and goings. Hed still have access to us, but wed know he was comingwhether he wanted us to or not. Id need to be careful how I spun it when I told him. He was more keyed in to how I thought than most people, so I wanted to at least take the night to come up with a plan. With that in mind, I sent him a message.



Either hed be there or he wouldnt. Hopefully, our relationship wasnt that far gone.

Saewell, I wasnt sure what to do with Sae. Eventually, I wanted the penthouse to myself. It would be easier to handle everythingas both Matt and Myrddinwithout anyone else tracking my comings and goings. But I wasnt going to put that over her well-being. Shed been through hell. As long as she was in hiding, her social interaction was limited to me, Kinsley, and my family. Other than our initial discussion, I had no idea where she was at, in terms of headspace. And as Kinsley had so recently reminded me, isolation could be a hell of its own.

I crawled onto the hospital bed in my room, feeling profoundly on the back foot. From the moment I woke up, it felt like Id been managing people and delegating, which wasnt my forte. Hopefully, Kinsley would be able to take more of a leading role as time went on and everything settled. With that in mind, I finished what was left of the recovery potion, gagging at the taste.

Idly, I pulled up my character sheet. There hadnt been any changes. I still wouldnt know how much the augmented stats altered my abilities until I could let loose.

One down, one to go.

Speaking of which. I had two levels to distribute. Id yet to bother with them, considering everything else that was going on. Now that there wasnt an immediately impending crisis, there was no reason not to take my time and consider my options carefully. I read through the Ordinator feats first, noting anything that looked promising, then through the Page feats. There was an improved version of that looked promising, along with some general purpose feats that would help in the short term.

I navigated to the dropdownand stopped.







It suddenly clicked. I was offered a class for completing the receptacle in Region 14. Id assumed that offer would simply be null, due to the nature of my subterfuge. But there it was. I focused on the carrot, and text began to scroll.