It was still dark when Tars heard the bustling of a breaking camp. Fires were being built back up, food was being prepared, belongings were sorted and packed, and tents were taken down. He wasn't sure what season it was, so he had no idea how long he'd slept, only that it wasn't quite enough.
With any luck, Tars would have a wagon to ride because his body wasn't ready for a day long march, even as slow of one as this would be.
Before he even rose from bed, the Protector looked through his quests to see what his new daily one was, only to see it was still showing the quest from the day before.
'It was nearly one full day since I received the last one,' Tars guessed. That would probably give him a couple more hours, a little after dawn, whenever that is. He would check then. In the meantime, he'd get warm by the fire and practice his Mana Manipulation. 'Perhaps Fire Magic will come to me?'
Tars made his way outside, putting on the clothes he was given the day before. He would need to find a way to get some sturdy boots instead of the thin sandals he was currently using.
Tars looked around the area, watching people busily working. It was too dark to make out faces, the sun barely starting to brighten the sky.
Turning to the fire, Tars tried to use Mana Manipulation to grasp the red colored pips, floating in and around the flames. It wasn't a physical action. He was using his mind, or maybe his Mind or Magic stat for it. Using the skill made him feel like he had a muscle that covered a small area around him, a muscle he could move and flex to control these pips. The specks of fire mana were hard to grasp, however, feeling almost slippery, and making it a slow process.
When the pip he'd grabbed approached him, after a minute of slow effort, the reddish hue faded leaving a grayish orb that looked like fog or mist. It had become neutral mana, no longer of the fire element.
He tried a few more times, attempting to pull them faster while putting his hand closer to the flames. It seemed to work, as Tars felt a distant warmth when the pip touched his fingertip, like a memory of fire as opposed to true heat.
The heat quickly vanished, and the mana was absorbed into him as it turned into neutral gray.
'Hmmm, I must be missing something with the fire, but I can start with the neutral mana. Maybe it can improve my mana regeneration?'
Tars focused on grabbing as much mana as he could and pulling it to him as quickly as possible. Grabbing each pip was still slow, though. Maybe there was another way to attract mana? If there was Tars couldn't think of it.
Tars couldn't feel a difference, but he kept at it for a few minutes until the Miccans made their appearance. Kinton and Umia came out from the farmhouse and took stock of what needed to be done. Kinton came to the fire Tars was sitting at while Umia went to wake their daughter.
"Ready to get started, Tars?" he asked, holding his hands close to the flames.
"I am," Tars answered simply then paused before asking his own question. "What season are we in, Mayor?"
"It's early harvest season, the frosts will begin in about three months."
"So we are in a hurry, then," Tars commented, thinking about how long this journey will take.
"Yes, that was one of the things people were arguing about last night." Kinton chuckled, briefly. "Thank you for whatever skill you used yesterday, it gave me an excuse to end that meeting and get people back to doing what was needed. They had wanted to wait a few days to gather what crops they could, but I don't think we could afford to wait."
Tars just nodded. He didn't understand the situation well enough to comment. "Can you explain what happened before I arrived? Why was the village being attacked?"
The Mayor nodded and began explaining their circumstances. "We're in the Ulstwen Kingdom, which borders the Lerati Ocean to the west, the Cabrimmun Empire to the north-west, the Howling Woods to the north-east, the Grumweld Mountains to the east, and the Wildlands to the south."
Mayor Kinton looked back into the fire as he continued. "The Cabrimmun Empire is something of a rival kingdom that our Ulstwen Kingdom has bickered with for ages. But we've had peace with Cabrimmun for decades, a peace our King and his father before him fought for."
The Mayor paused, shaking his head before explaining in more detail. "You see, our two kingdoms border the Howling Woods, which is a monster infested forest that is a constant threat. Being at peace means less soldiers of ours fighting each other and more able to defend against our common enemy."
Tars nodded along in understanding. Fighting a war on two fronts is very hard on a people.
"Sadly, our king died," Kinton sighed. We haven't had a queen in over ten years and Prince Rondwen was only sixteen when he was crowned the new king." He closed his eyes and shook his head.
"He was a good boy, and would have been a good King, if he'd only had more time. Instead, our politics crippled him. I don't know the details, I've lived in Immica for twenty years now and only visited the capital, besides. What I do know, is the higher nobility started fighting amongst themselves for power and resources."
Tars glanced at the Mayor waiting for him to continue.
"The better a territory does the more resources they are granted by the kingdom as an investment," the Mayor clarified. "It was designed to make sure those with noble titles did their best to improve the country. Better soldiers, more iron, more wheat, better trade, whatever they chose to do as long as it helped the kingdom as a whole."
"This method worked well under King Lindwen. It has not worked well under King Rondwen. Probably because he couldn't trust the people around him. If he tries to change it now the nobles will turn on him. He just didn't have enough time to grow and didn't have anyone he could trust. At least, not anyone strong enough to keep the nobility in line."
The Mayor's face twisted in disgust. "Now, we're left with this. 'If you can't rule well, just make your opponents' rule worse!' One noble's territory attacking another's to ruin their standing and steal their resources on top of that."
"Baron Zemwold is the ruler of this territory, with Immica being the easternmost of a dozen towns and villages. Baron Hestos rules the territory to the east. They have been squabbling for about a year and it seems Hestos has now resorted to hiring bandits to do his dirty work."
Kinton glared into the flames, his hands clenched in anger. "You see, even if we stay, the attacks will keep coming, but next time it might be mercenaries or soldiers." The Mayor's hands dropped to his sides and he looked into sky that was just starting to lighten.
"And Umia tells me she is hearing about skirmishes breaking out against the Empire again. They are probably preparing to try and take over our weakened country."
Kinton looked at Tars again, his face more serious than he'd shown the Protector up to this point. With a lowered voice he continued, "You saved our lives yesterday, Tars, whether you meant to or not. For that I thank you, truly." He sighed and Tars felt he wouldn't like what the Mayor said next.
"But your arrival means things are going to get worse before they get better. Gods don't assign emergency quests like the one we got without a reason. Something big is happening and people are scared. We hope that you are truly a sign of a path to survival."
Tars could do nothing more than meet his questioning gaze. He knew he was not able to do much yet; he was still too weak. But he wouldn't have been Blessed if there was no chance of victory, right?
Kinton smiled at the Protector. "Just do your best, Tars." With that, the elder patted his shoulder and changed the subject. "So, I heard you had a quest you completed yesterday?"
"Yes," Tars replied with a nod. "A daily quest for improving myself. I gained 100 experience and my Mind increased by one. I was expecting another when I awoke but it hasn't appeared yet."
"At dawn," the Mayor informed him. "I'm not sure how many people get these 'daily' quests, but there are plenty of skills that have daily or weekly uses. They all become usable with the rising of the sun." The Mayor stopped there, slowly looking around before focusing on Tars again.
"We didn't get enough time to talk yesterday, so I was wondering, is there anything you need from me?"
"Yes, actually," Tars answered while resting a hand on his sword hilt. "A few things, but I think they should be simple."
Kinton gave a short nod for him to continue.
"First, boots. These sandals won't be practical for a long march, especially if I end up needing to fight along the way."
"As soon as the sun rises, I'll have Allevia take you to our leatherworker. Vert can give you what you need. Ask him to make you a new sheath for your sword, a cloak, and anything else you think you'll need. I'll handle the cost, just try not to spend too much."
"Understood," Tars answered seriously. "Second, I don't think I'll be strong enough to walk the whole day just yet, so I'm wondering if I was assigned a spot on a wagon somewhere? I can swap on and off with someone, I believe, but going without rest will be more than I can manage."
"That was already planned," the Mayor confirmed with a wave of his hand. "Several of the hunters, along with Paschot … I don't think you've met him yet, are going to be rotating as scouts and guards. I'd like you to take a turn or two during the day and rest on a wagon when you are not on duty."
Tars smiled, happy with that arrangement. "Third, I need to learn a Life Skill and could use some guidance with Light spells. Feerestia will be trying to teach me Wind and Water skills, along with Sword Arts, so I have that part covered."
"Hmmm, that will be harder," Kinton pondered. "The only Life skill I know of is Miussa's Healing Light. It's part of the Light Domain also, if that helps. But she is more of a tailor than a mage, so I'm not sure how helpful she can be. I can have you ride in her wagon in the afternoon for a couple hours, if you'd like."
"That should be more than enough to get me started," Tars agreed with a smile. "If my daily quest asks for something else, I will let you know."
"Then, I'm off to see what Umia has arranged for breakfast. I'll have Allevia meet you here when breakfast is ready."
"Thank you, Mayor," Tars said as Kinton walked away from the fire pit.
It was nearly dawn by the time they'd finished talking, with the sky taking on orange hues over the mountains to the east. People had stayed away while the Mayor was talking to Tars, but now that he'd left the area was bustling. Many people approached Tars, wanting to meet him. Tars knew he'd forget most of their names, but at least he would remember their faces.
When he felt a gentle pulsing in his mind, Tars excused himself to his tent to view his new quest.
-Daily Quest- Grow stronger every day!
-Learn new Skills and improve the ones you have!
-Increase Stats 0/2.
-Increase a Sword Arts' level 0/1.
-Learn a spell from a new Element 0/1.
-Train in combat 0/30 minutes.
-(Optional- Win a life-or-death fight! 0/1.)
-Rewards- 1 randomly assigned bonus stat, 1 Sword Proficiency level, 1 Elemental Proficiency level.
-(Optional Reward- Minor Sword Enchantment.)
Immediately below the daily quest there was a new optional quest as well.
-Optional Quest- Use the Blessing of Arthaesis.
-Use the Blessing of Arthaesis to assign someone a Personal Quest to improve themselves in some way.
-Warning! Using Blessings require Divine Energy!
-Rewards- Increased Divine Energy.