The third Day of Wind, month of the First Moon; a ship departed from the harbour of Ironhill port city, voyaging into the Hipsink River.
The Hipsink River was called a river but it was wide enough to fit the entirety of the Toenil Kingdom in it. The Toenil kingdom was situated on a huge continent that spanned 1968 Sitra in length and was 590 Sitra wide. Its territory covered the entirety of the continent it stood upon.
The Toenil kingdom was situated on the right of the Hipsink River while the Flinchear kingdom was situated on its left. The Flinchear kingdom too occupied the entirety of the landmass it stood upon but the area of its landmass was slightly inferior to the Toenil kingdom.
A ship departed from the harbour of Ironhill port city, its destination being the Daffodil Delta of the Flinchear kingdom. Daffodil Delta was famous for its sandy beaches. Moreover, the beaches were situated in freshwater regions due to all the tributaries that merged into one at an inner part of the land and divided into many wide streams before entering the Hipsink River. It formed a huge river delta that lead to it being developed into a tourist attraction.
There was no city situated there due to the possibility of the region being flooded at any time and hence, the region was filled with many luxury boathouses that rowed the pristine waters. It was a scenic location of the Flinchear Kingdom that was frequented by many tourists not exclusive to the Toenil Kingdom alone.
A Ship currently sailed across the Hipsink River. It had two huge dragon heads affixed onto the front of its deck while its sides were layered by what looked like the body of a dragon. A dragon tail extended out of the rear of the ship and touched the river water, occasionally splashing a burst of energy into the stream. On its hull were a set of words inscribed into what read as, "2-Headed Humroar". It was the name of the ship written in with strokes resembling the river waves.
On the mast of the ship, a small open cabin-like arrangement was erected to allow a person to stand within it and inspect the wild waters. Currently, a man that had a semi-bald head and sporting a bulging belly stood on the open cabin as he infused the energy in his body into a small earring he wore on his left ear.
The earring was box-shaped and had the inscription of a circle enclosing a sea wave on it. As the energy was supplied to it, the inscription on its surface glowed with a faint lustre as a formless aura spread into the surroundings.
David Washer closed his eyes and concentrated onto his left earring. After a couple of moments in silence, David Washer stopped supplying energy to the earring as he descended the mast.
David Washer instructed a couple of his underlings to keep watch from the top of the mast while he entered the cabins within the ship. He inspected the three passengers to check if they were feeling any sickness and returned to his cabin after exchanging some pleasantries.
"Daddy!" A petite figure pounced on him the moment he opened the cabin door.
"Hahaha, how are you feeling?" David Washer caught hold of Sarah and spun her around him a few times. He then gently placed her down and watched with amusement as she wobbled on the floor with a silly grin on her face. David caught her before she lost her balance and fell down.
"I feel powerful Dad. Like, I can carry this ship on my back and run on the waters." Sarah said as she motioned her hands to the side and performed an action of carrying something huge on her back.
"Oh my, my child has grown up into a powerful maiden." David Washer echoed with a high pitched voice as he imitated her actions.
Sarah aimed a kick at his legs and flinched in pain. She pouted as her hands caressed David's legs to see if they were actually made from flesh and not some reinforced metal.
"Come with me. The first step after the awakening ceremony is for you to refine a Jewellery and become a true Level 1 Warrior." David Washer said as he led Sarah into a room that led from behind the bookshelf in his cabin.
"Was there always a room behind this?" Sarah exclaimed, as in all the years she had played in this room, she hadn't noticed it even once.
"Well, it wouldn't have been a secret room if a kid like you could notice it." David laughed as Sarah continued to pout in displeasure as her fingers pinched his thigh. Her pout further deepened when she saw her father wearing full-body armour beneath his clothes.
'Well, this room is something that even Warriors stronger than me would find it difficult to detect. This is one of the fabled, 'Sealed Room' that I managed to steal by luck. Not that I am going to tell her of this fact since the information might endanger her life.' David Washer thought as he led Sarah into the room and closed the door behind him.
The room was inconspicuous as it looked no different than the other rooms in the ship. David then inserted his energy into the picture of a ship affixed onto the wall near him when another door opened.
Through this door, Stephen and his son, John entered. Stephen immediately closed the door behind him and inserted his energy into another painting near him.
"Now, the two of you will begin your training to become true Level 1 warriors," David said as he pulled down a lever when their surroundings changed. What looked like a regular room in the ship transformed into a meadow filled with short green grass. A faint wind breezed past them while the scent of nature assailed their noses.
The two kids gasped in shock as they witnessed their surroundings morph into such unbelievable scenery. As they touched the grass gently swaying on the ground, they were further surprised as the sensation felt perfectly real, as if they had suddenly appeared in a meadow.
The two children then bugged their parents about their surroundings but the adults stayed tight-lipped about it. They readily diverted the topic with various excuses when David waved his hands and a shelf emerged out of the ground.
As the two kids stared wide-eyed at the sorcery performed before them, David took two rings from the shelf and handed them to the two.
"Wear it and sit in a meditative pose. I will teach you about the methods to refine this ring. The moment you finish refining it, you would become warriors." David Washer said with a smile. He couldn't conceal the trace of pride present in his eyes when he looked at the two children before him.
…
A day passed in such a manner as the Day of the Earth began. David Washer was standing within the open cabin at the top of the mast as he inspected his surroundings. He always made sure to inspect his surroundings at regular intervals. This was the only reason he could live by operating along the Hipsink River for so many years.
Only a few secluded locations of the Hipsink River were safe, the rest were so risky to traverse upon that out of 10 ships, it would be a cause for celebration if even 4 of them managed to cross it safely.
As David Washer closed his eyes and obtained feedback from his left earring, he suddenly detected a strange pulse from within one of the cabins in his ship. As he concentrated his senses towards the location, he could make out a blurry silhouette caressing a small box in his hands.
The ability stored in his left earring was termed as 'Aura Sense', as the name implied, it could sense the aura of living creatures, and the energy traces in his surroundings. The ability stored in his right earring was termed 'Displacement Measure', which could measure the changes in the surrounding volume, density, and momentum. Their range, accuracy, etc. were all depended on the energy he expended and his energy manipulation skills.
Using these two abilities in conjunction, David Washer could also spot the presence of Jewellery in his surroundings. In his world, each jewellery was imbued with a strange power within them that could be activated by inserting energy.
Depending on the aura converging around a person and the aura emitted by the jewellery he wore on his body, David Washer could estimate the power of the said individual.
Currently, David Washer felt shocked as he focused his attention on the small box that was being caressed by the person seated somewhere within his ship. Judging based on their position within the ship, David concluded that the person was the man with the scholarly aura.
The box in the scholarly man's hands emitted an aura that was 10 times or more denser than his own. Even he, as a Level 3 Warrior felt an instinctual feeling of wanting to prostrate before the contents in the box. Moreover, it was not one, but two equally dense auras that were situated next to one another.
'Is that a level 4 Jewellery? No, it can't be. A level 4 Jewellery will only give me a feeling of fear. This feeling is something only the Nobles and the Royals emit. S-So, it must be…' As David Washer continued to inspect the aura more, he felt his conjecture turning out to be more accurate.
Principled Jewellery!
The eyes of David were enveloped by an intense sense of greed and desire while his breathing turned laboured. His hands shivered while his face was flushed red with excitement.
'If it really is a Principled Jewellery, then I must obtain it at any cost. Only the warriors either possessing a Principled Jewellery or having the bloodline of an ancestor that could wield one are qualified to become a level 4 Warrior.'
David heaved in deep breaths and took a long time to control his raging emotions. He inspected his expressions and wore a poker face as he descended the mast and gave some instructions to his underlings.
He calmly entered his cabin, locked the door behind him and entered the secret room behind the bookshelf. After entering it, he could no longer maintain his poker face. He hurriedly added all restrictions to the door and ran towards Stephen who was instructing the two children. They had already refined their Jewellery and successfully became Level 1 Warriors.
"You two continue to practice," David said to the two as he hurriedly pulled Stephen with him and ran towards a corner of the meadow, creating a huge gap between them and the children.
"What happened?" Stephen inquired as his expression turned solemn.
"I found them!" David said.
"You found the traitors that stole part of our wealth? Or have you discovered the whereabouts of our wives?" Stephen hurriedly asked.
"Set those trivial issues aside for now. I found a Principled Jewellery." David whispered, afraid that someone might hear them even though it was impossible due to the mysterious properties of a Sealed Room.
"…" It took him a couple of breaths time before Stephen could digest David's statement.
"Not one, but two! I found two of those fate changing treasures in the hands of our guests." David said as his eyes practically spewed fires of greed.
The legs of Stephen gave way under him as disbelief was etched on his face. If not for the trust he had on David Washer, he would have beaten up any person that had ever claimed such a ridiculous statement.
"So, how do you suggest we steal it?" Stephen laughed as he stood up and dusted his clothes. There was an obvious presence of greed etched deep within his eyes.