Chapter 134
Neutral zone parallelling Republic of Shantu, Continent: Barat, the Year 2038, Planet: Grimoire
Fortunately, despite what that awful dream portended, neither Grifton nor Firenze had any problems preventing an unwanted pregnancy. Nor had the caravan encountered further issues while traveling the previously planned route.
They cleared the most dangerous areas through the mountainous passages. The remainder of the travel involved going through four portals in key, heavily guarded positions.
Two oases and one waterfall laden with snow and frost decorating every portion of outside extremities. They'd all nearly frozen by the waterfall. Staying there could have been more optimal in the least. Grifton hoped he wouldn't have to go there again anytime soon.
Once they carried forward with their caravan, they arrived at another bay. This time, it was called Shuttlers' Rescue Bay. Caravans by the hundreds arrived and departed from the area.
Only a few of them seemed in a hurry to depart. Grifton found that an interesting reaction when he thought about the name of the central city. However, they only remained there for a short time. Work was to be done, and then they had to depart and return to Three-Pronged Fork.
Once they headed out, Grifton discovered they followed a different route on their return. "I take it that the former route was too dangerous to be retraced?" he was amused.
"Partially yes, that was a reason." Diego agreed. "We also received word that border conflicts were arising with the Bellonia empire again."
"Bellonia is at it again?" Grifton scowled in disgust. "They didn't get enough indigestion from the last time they instigated a war?" He sighed in annoyance.
"Well, I don't think they were the culprits this time." Diego shrugged. "Though some of their citizens might claim credit for what happened." He shook his head. "though anyone in their right mind wouldn't do so."
Uh oh, unease shivered through him. Grifton frowned. "What happened?" He had a horrible feeling this time. Could it have something to do with one of those earlier dreams? It turned out his suspicion was correct.
"Flange Orphanage is no longer a thing," Firenze told him bluntly. "That entire escarpment was burned down, and then parts imploded." He grimaced. "Once the ash and smoke cleared away, nothing was left." There was further discomfort in his expression.
Stunned, Grifton shook his head in shock. "So that entire area is what?" That didn't fit with what he recalled. There must be more to it than what he was told.
"It is now part of the conflict as Bellonia refuses to back off and release it to Shantu." Firenze grimaced. "They're claiming it was illegally taken away from the Empire from the beginning of Shantu's original land claims." He shook his head. "From what I can tell, there is an ongoing investigation into what sparked that fire."
Oh, good grief. Grifton was utterly disgusted when he heard what had happened. "I suppose this also means that Three-Pronged Fork is under threat of reclamation, too?" If so, why should they bother returning in that case?
Diego shook his head. "Surprisingly, no. Only that section of land imploded under the stress of tertiary fracturing." He grimaced sourly. "Such is the claim of experts from Bellonia."
Yeah, right, but whatever, Grifton listened intently.
"Since no one else can say otherwise, Bellonia insists they can fix the problem." Diego shrugged in disbelief. "Which is why that particular section of land is what will be reclaimed if what I'm hearing is correct."
He really wondered if everything was all right back there. Doyle Moline should've been mentioned in this discourse, and his name had yet to be mentioned. If negotiations were underway, this would be interesting.
Then again, ever since Madam Murray died, Moline hadn't quite been right in his head, for that matter. Grifton sighed. "Since one of the owners died some time ago," He'd been told about the particulars of that complicated ownership after having helped heal Doyle Moline back to health. "Only of the three owners who could prevent it from being taken remain in place."
"So, there were other owners besides Doyle Moline this time?" All the men looked at Grifton in consternation at his revelation.
Grifton nodded, his uneasiness rising once more at their reactions. Now, all of them appeared very nervous after what he had said. "Though I doubt that any of them want anything to do with that orphanage and what remains in its ruins now," Grifton shrugged. I guess we'll just have to see what happens later."
This would be quite the mess that no one wanted to clear up. Not even Grifton wanted any part of it. He knew Darmono and Lamberton were fed up with the whole mess; as for Doyle Moline, who knew how he'd react to the news.
His companions appeared both speechless and worried, though they seemed unable to form coherent words to ask further questions. He disliked talking further about the Orphanage, much less the individuals involved.
"How long will we be on the road with this altered route?" Grifton changed the subject so no one would question his knowledge of the Orphanage and its owners.
"We'll be taking a week or two longer to return home than scheduled," Orian informed Grifton. "So that means we'll be passing through some different locations. "However, we'll avoid going near the areas where the conflict is raging." He pointed to the map, where the route glowed golden across the brown markings of various cities and other watery points of focal interest. "This time, we'll likely ride a ferry at one point to reach one of the portals." He tapped the center of a lake where an island floated serenely in frothing waters.
Err, that last part looked somewhat intimidating, but who was he to question their choice? Grifton looked it over without a comment. "All right, it looks pretty straightforward." He liked that about where they were headed the most. He was seriously tired of being attacked every which way they turned.
For once, all Grifton wanted was a peaceful journey back to Shantu. He thought there was more news he'd yet to hear about. However, with the time it took to reach Shantu again, there was no doubt someone would eventually spill the beans. He would just have to be patient, that's all.
~*~
Well, so much for a peaceful end of the journey. It had been uneventful except for a few brushes with cursed mages again. Grifton had been so irritated with them that he'd just snapped their necks before throwing them into an area infested with carnivorous flowers.
Firenze looked back at them. "I sure hope they don't become as evil sentient as those mages were." He muttered.
"I doubt it." Grifton glanced at Firenze with a faint smile. "They have a ways to go before evolving to that level." Before dispatching the cursed mages, "I did some research beforehand as soon as I learned of the local flora that resided here."
Firenze looked at him warily. "I'm not sure whether to be relieved or worried." He knew that Grifton was beset with nasty nightmares nightly. He'd taken to sleeping with Grifton to keep him company so that he wasn't alone when awakening.
Grifton nodded. "Yeah, once I knew where the least evolved creatures were," There was no way he'd take any chances of giving those plants or mages chances to cause further trouble. "I double-checked with the spirits of this area to make sure I didn't pick the wrong area."
Firenze sighed with relief when Grifton emphasized his choice of region. "I'll admit, I wondered if you had just snapped because of all the small delays."
Grifton shook his head. "Nope." He'd intentionally picked a section of plant life that was nowhere near the evolutionary point.
Firenze looked uneasy. "Uhm, when we stop for the night, I need to tell you something," he frowned. "Then again, waiting for a better time wouldn't hurt.
Grifton blinked at Firenze. Usually, he was more open. "I wasn't going to make any mistakes." Additionally, Grifton also checked to make sure the mages were at a different level than the level that would promote them either. "I didn't want any nasty surprises for other caravan merchants entering this area in our wake."
Clearly relieved at hearing that, Firenze grinned. "Oh right, so that's why the frost tier rankers are sent out first," he recalled with amusement. "You have the best and worst reputations as far as cleanup is concerned."
Firenze shrugged and grinned when Grifton grimaced sourly. "You have to admit," he laughed at Grifton, who rolled his eyes in addition to the sour grimace. "There is a reason why you're all considered Frost Tier."
Grifton shook his head with a sigh.
Firenze added, "It isn't just because the artisanry primary level has reached S quality." He folded his arms.
"That is just making things even messier." Grifton reflected on what Firenze said because it was all true.
He made a disgusted face, much to Firenze's amusement. "You really don't like the new ranking system, do you?"
Grifton shook his head. "Nope," He scowled. "It focuses too much on promoting only the highest quality of everything and forcing premium prices to be set."
Firenze nodded sympathetically. "Yeah, it is harkening back to our childhood years."
They sat in silence for a moment.
That wasn't the original purpose of creating those tiers, and it just didn't work in favor of the commoners, either. Some old standards were creeping in through insidious attempts to restore the old order before Griftons' emergence on the scene.
Ugh, the stakes had risen because of that change in the ranking of what artisans had to produce to match the guards', warriors', and mages' skills. Grifton hadn't cared for that either. Even if he had managed to reach that level as an artisan as well as the other ranks. To begin with, he'd been a jack of all trades.
Grifton sighed. "When did everything get twisted again?" He hadn't known when he'd reached "S" in his evaluations. That had been quite the shock for Grifton the last time he'd gone to be evaluated.
"Cheer up," Firenze laughed at him. "Now all we have to do is focus on artisan competitions, nothing else." He elbowed Grifton. "That is, after all, what you prefer to focus on, right?"
On the other hand, he was officially banned from participating in international academic sparring combat competitions. The only other one who'd been banned was Firenze. He suspected that it was due to his association with Grifton and not his skill set.
"True," Grifton conceded. "I am happy about that." He admitted. "I don't have to worry about any more problems with stray arrows or something else disrupting the festivities." Now, that only happened when he was outside of Shantu.
"Besides," Firenze said, following his thoughts. "We can still go to the unofficial spars. It just isn't the same if we don't show our faces there." He reminded Grifton of the complaints that had again peppered their communications channel.
A chuckle escaped him. "Yeah, that's true." Grifton shook his head. "I don't know when that differentiation between the Frost tier and the others began." He sighed. "At one point, all the high ranks were considered equal." Grifton folded his arms in contemplation of the past.
Nowadays, the Frost tier was equal with SSS-ranked adventurers and hunters, which was something other than what Grifton thought was appropriate. A sigh escaped him.
"While that was true within our city," Firenze surprised him with his statement. "That isn't always true in the case of other regions within Shantu." He grimaced with a sigh. "I wasn't going to mention this before, but I know it's bothering you."
It also made their lives increasingly complicated because now they were in higher demand than before. Nations all over wanted them to break through areas that needed to be more feasible. They were considered groundbreakers, metaphorically speaking, when it came to creating usable, stable routes to travel.
Grifton nodded. "Yeah, but I hadn't known a disparity elsewhere within Shantu." That irritated him even more.
Sometimes, that was a good thing, and other times, it was disastrous. Fortunately, this time, they'd managed to clean up the route of any nastier traps that would threaten the lives of prospective merchants on their first journey.
Firenze shook his head. "It has also become an issue for others who're discriminated against if they don't have magical abilities at all."
Grifton rolled his eyes. "There was a time when even I had no abilities at all," he said, folding his arms.
"Ahh, was that when you were a child?" Firenze was always curious about that time of his life. Mainly because he hadn't witnessed that time of his extreme vulnerability.
"Yes, do you find it hard to believe?" Grifton glanced at him.
"Not really." Firenze shook his head. "I believe I had brief glimpses of you when the sparring combat exams, including Flange Orphanage, were still only intercity, not international."
Grifton blinked at him. "I was a pathetic brat back then."
Firenze was silent. "If what I remember is correct." He handed a small object to Grifton to examine. "I'm shocked you survived in such a brutal, unforgiving environment." Firenze shook his head in admiration for Grifton's determination. "It was worse than what us street kids endured on the streets." He made Grifton's eyes widen at the last admission.
"I hadn't known I was that bad off," Grifton admitted as he examined the object in his hands. He flicked a small button and jolted when various scratchy videos began streaming. They flickered when buffering, and he paused the scene.
Firenze made a face. "Well, you proved your real worth in the end." He shrugged. "Though it didn't come without a horrific sacrifice in the end." Shadows crossed his face.
"Oh, that's right," Grifton remembered. "Wasn't there something you had to tell me?"
"Huh?" Firenze frowned as he thought about everything. "Nope, I think I just wanted to learn more about your childhood. So, is it working now?" He gestured at the tiny video camera.
"What? Oh," Grifton clicked it again. This time, all the videographic scenes were played correctly. "Sheesh, yeah, this was when I was hindered by old regulations. I wasn't able to speak properly back then either." Grifton shook his head in discomfort.
"I remember that last time," Firenze tapped the image to pause.
They looked at it together. It showed a partial transformation occurring.
"I was almost beaten half to death after that happened," Grifton remembered. "Not my fondest memory either." He shrugged. "It was not long after that the rules were finally changed."
Firenze nodded. "Right, that was also when the director had to step down." His face tightened. "On that note, we should turn in early. We can watch these again some other night."
Grifton was left with the distinct impression that Firenze was troubled. It had to do with the reminder of Moline, whose life had turned for the worse after his return to Shantu. Had he, Lamberton, and Darmono done the right thing in bringing Doyle back to a place he detested and was filled with nothing but tragic memories after the death of Madam Murray? The thought troubled Grifton when he went to sleep.
This time, after that last clash, they returned without further hindrances. However, they weren't so pleased with what awaited them. For starters, their usual routine was disrupted almost before entering Three-Pronged Fork's limits.