70 Arrivals
1174 Words
Janus was overjoyed at his first successful attempt that he burned a tree branch down in the process. Causing his audience to yell in panic and for Haruna to throw him down with a gust of wind.
"I told you to be careful!"
He laughed on the ground as he saw Haruna throw the same gust of wind to quell the fire before it could devour the whole tree.
When she saw his student on the ground celebrating, she simply smiled and shook her head.
"Good job, now let's find another one."
They scoured each section of the territory on the hunt for these geists. Turns out there were a lot of them, on three acres of land they would find at least one or two. This, along with the usual water transferring duties that Haruna had to attend to kept them busy for the next few weeks.
Reports of flash storms around the area lowered from 2-3 every week into 1, which they would then seek out and destroy whenever it happened.
Slowly but surely Janus' abilities came easier to him. He could now open up his Wellspring in the blink of an eye. He could now create curved barriers that could surround him completely, although there was still the odd blind spot behind him that Haruna would call out.
He could conjure fireballs better now, but his aim was less than optimal. Haruna forbade him to practice with fire, instead she recommended him to attend archery practice on the Mystic Flames' barracks, which he now did for at least an hour a day.
Which was a shame, since practicing fireballs made him excited the most, but he had to agree. Going around the village with a loaded gun wasn't a safe idea. He had to be patient.
He spent most of his time with Haruna, from his classes during daytime through their chores in the afternoon. He still attended meetings and did paperwork on early mornings. His time was spent was either working or training around the clock. He was exhausted every night, but it was worth it.
Soon summer came, and so did the abundance of their most famous crop.
With the popularity of sweet potatoes, came another invention from Adduk's workshop. Since the noodles needed to be created by hand, the dwarves fabricated a pasta making machine that made the process more efficient. Adduk enhanced the design by mounting it on what looked like a small cupboard attached with a steam-engine and a stove, which essentially mixed and kneaded the dough, before laying it down on a conveyor belt with wheels and gears before pressing it between two steel drills that would cut it into finer strips.
The goblins had essentially created an automatic production. It was fueled by coal and steam, but Adduk also fashioned a modular contraption that would make it run via flowing water through wheels that they could attach on rivers.
It was a fascinating contraption, and Janus ordered another machine to be built so he could practice his water conjuring spells in a productive way.
Haruna challenged him to find out which one of them could make the most noodles in two hours. And everybody came by to watch. Goblins would pour in ingredients in one end while others would organize the results in another. The winner was decided by how many baskets they could fill.
Janus lost by a wide margin of course. He managed to fill five baskets before breaking down the gears after pushing in too much water. Haruna filled ten baskets while meditating through the whole process, sitting down in a lotus position while maintaining a constant flow of water to run the machine.
"Okay, now you're just showing off." He sulked.
Janus was more than happy to have lost. He has four spells under his belt now, and they have been tracking their process ever since. Their dealings with investigating geists across the territory also served another purpose for Haruna, who chose to spend the night in one of the tribes guest rooms. There she would conduct interviews and conduct her studies on the various cultures around the village. Every week she would blow through stacks of papers and scrolls, which she would present to the whole council during their morning classes. Her interest in fostering peaceful relations inspired every race in their own way, and they were happy to help her at every turn. Sometimes in exchange for a magical favor or two.
Master Roban and his caravan arrived again from Gaddi in the first week of summer. They brought with them five wagons altogether. Now that they started paving the roads with solid rock, they had more room and opportunities for trade.
They had sent Gaddi twenty sacks of sweet potatoes for free during their previous trip. Along with other goods that were traded at a discount price, they still devoured through all of their gold bars and gemstones, along with steel bars and weapons. They asked Master Roban to bring more of the latter, which concerned the merchant.
"Your highness, I hope this doesn't come at an inappropriate time, but there seems to be some complication along the way."
"What is it, Master? Is there anything amiss with Haruna's friends?"
Haruna had asked permission for her to invite her friends into the village. They were all spell casters with varying degrees of expertise in the arcane arts. There were three of them, Janus could see them chatting with Haruna, tired and sore from the journey. They were all dressed in travelling coats of the most pristine leather with and cloaks and books by their side.
Interestingly enough, each one of them was dressed even better than Haruna was, who in her own way looked more like a Princess than Yvaine.
They were an interesting bunch, one male and two female spellcasters with various ornaments and weapons on their belt. One was wearing a comically large cone hat. Another was wearing a rapier in her belt and the male one held a heavy tome that was chained to his back. He wore round spectacles that magnified his eyes.
"Not with our guests, no. In fact, they're just as weird and terrifying as our first esteemed guest. Which, considering how well she's doing here doesn't seem to be a problem. The problems in Gaddi itself. instability is brewing as we speak. I did not hear it from the Earl himself, although he did express his dismay upon not having his daughter come back home. I heard the rumors this from the taverns and in the docks. There's a rebel faction that's gaining followers in their country. I fear our trade options with them will be limited in the next few months."
"Is this crisis imminent?"
"I'd say it will take six months for the whole thing to blow up, but that would be optimistic."
"Very well, you've done a great job. Keep your eyes and ears open."
"Yes, your highness. At least some of my mercenaries have their use from time to time. I heard from Master Ringo that you had new plans for trade?"
"Yes, indeed Master Roban. What are your thoughts about carrying more sweet potatoes?"
- Writer
