The Abyss (4)

[Maybe I'm not thinking about this right. The Duke isn't fighting for humanity; he's only fighting for himself. He doesn't care what happens to the people in this town. Also, the fairies are by no means working against the townspeople. In fact, their cooperation has led to more merchants coming to the region. If anything, the fairies are doing more for the town than the Duke ever has. I should frame this as a battle between the nobility and the fairies, with the townspeople acting as bystanders. The most important part of this war is to keep a positive image of the fairies even if the nobles' troops are all eliminated. Setting the fairies as the permanent enemy of humanity doesn't help anyone.]

My mind races as I devise a plan.

[Weakening the nobility can only work in my favor. In fact, everyone benefits from the weakening of the nobility other than the affected nobles. Even nobles want to weaken other nobles. I don't think I can use this opportunity to gain favor from another equally powerful noble, but I can always position myself favorably in the inevitable power vacuum. First, I should start a propaganda campaign to undermine the Duke's momentum. I can spread rumors talking about how much worse things will get if he wins in order to draw support away from him. This has the added benefit that, if he does win and things get worse, people will really turn against him. I don't think people know much about information warfare, so I'll use that to my advantage.]

"That's an interesting plan," Jezabel says as she takes a sip of tea from the cup in her hand.

"Thanks, it shouldn't be too difficult to pull off, and there are very few downsides," I respond as I cross my legs. It's the next day, and I'm now sitting in the Guild Master's office. Seeing my condition, Jezabel was quick to grant me an audience.

"Unless he finds out who started the rumors."

"I didn't say there were no downsides."

"I'll think it over. There isn't too much you can do, either way, so you'll just have to wait on my decision."

"That's fine. Anything you need from me?" I ask.

"No, but I'd like you to show me how to use that strengthening equipment at some point."

"So, you do need something from me." I struggle to hold back a smirk as Jezabel's brow furrows. "I don't understand why you need to be so coy; just say, 'yes, I do need your help with something.' I'm literally just looking for ways to help you out."

"Leave."

"Okay, I'll be working out later if you want a demonstration." I quickly shuffle out the door before she decides to make me regret my words.

[There's something thrilling about yanking her chain like that; I just can't help myself.]

I chuckle and walk down to the guild hall to meet Sakura and Josh. They went to the armor shop yesterday, so we decided to get the Talistones appraised today. We only have two, so it shouldn't take very long. The Talistones look like thin necklaces with an angular stone in the middle. There are some symbols on the stones, but they're otherwise unremarkable.

"Kids, the appraiser will see you now," Shelly calls for us, and we head into the back rooms.

"Hello, my name is Sven. I'm the general appraiser for this guild branch." Sven greets us warmly, and we introduce ourselves. Shortly thereafter, we produce the Talistones and place them on the table.

"Hmm, it looks like goblin craftsmanship." Sven makes a judgment almost immediately.

"What makes you say that?" I ask.

"Humans would never carve runes into something so fragile. Stones are not only hard to work with, but they aren't very durable."

"How are the goblins able to make something like this?"

"I'm not entirely sure, but it likely has something to do with the dungeon core. Older dungeons with larger dungeon cores tend to have better-equipped goblins. I've heard some people speculate that when the goblins control the dungeon cores, they're able to draw information from it, but I don't know enough about the subject to confirm or deny that."

[I remember hearing that the Dungeon Core is connected to the system, but I'm not sure exactly what that implies. Also, what exactly is the system? I know it has something to do with the seals but is it a physical construct or a digital overlay? I believe we briefly discussed this in class, but I don't think we got very far. I'll talk to Jezabel about it later.]

"So, can we use them?" Sakura asks politely. It's unusual for her to step into these kinds of conversations, so she must have a reason for speaking up now. I don't know what angle she's going for, but I decide to stand back and let her work.

"Of course."

"Really?" She moves closer to the appraiser excitedly. I can almost see her eyes sparkling.

"Hehe, yeah. You just wear it like a necklace." I can see Sven blushing. I don't know how she does it but watching Sakura is like observing a master at work.

"What does this one do?" Sakura picks one up and moves to place it around her neck.

"That one increases your strength," Sven says with a smile. Sakura puts it on and flexes.

"Am I super strong now?"

"No, I'd say it only increases the stat by ten to twenty points." Before he can say anything else, Sakura leaps forward.

"Ooh, what about this one?" She points at the second talistone on the table. The appraiser bends over to get a closer look at the artifact. While he's distracted, Sakura looks at me and then eyes the door. I nod and push Josh towards the exit. It seems Josh has gotten so used to being pulled around by us that he doesn't even question it anymore. He moves without any resistance. I slowly open the door, carefully making sure not to make a sound.

"This one affects your vision," Sven says after examining the talistone for a few seconds. Sakura quickly puts it on. She looks around for a moment, but her expression drops. I swear I can almost see tears forming at the edge of her eyes.

[She's good, that's for sure.]

"Everything looks the same. Am I doing it wrong?" The appraiser jumps out of his seat to comfort her.

"No, no, no, it isn't working because it's too bright out. That talistone helps you see better in the dark." Her face lights up with a huge smile.

"Really!? I'm gonna go test it out!" I see the opening before she even finishes speaking, and I run out of the room with Josh. Sakura runs past us and opens the door to the main hall.

"Okay, good luck out there." Sven's voice follows us down the hallway. "Wait! You were supposed to pay for-"

His complaint is cut off as the door closes behind us. The building is relatively busy, so we squeeze our way through the crowd and step outside.

"That was one hell of a scene you pulled there. What was that about?" I ask.

"He kept looking at me, and it pissed me off," Sakura says, her mood a bit foul.

[Fair enough.]

"So, I'm sure we all agree Josh should get the strengthening talistone, yes?"

"Yes," Sakura responds immediately. She turns to Josh, who's still thinking over the matter, and answers for him. "Josh agrees too."

"Good, then all that's left is to decide what to do with the night vision talistone. From my understanding, you can't wear two talistones. Why is that?"

"They'll interfere with each other, and neither will work," Josh responds. It's always nice to see him explain things, considering how quiet he normally is.

[Introverts tend to only talk about what they're interested in; I'll have to keep this in mind when he speaks.]

"Interesting. Since we both act as lookouts for the team, it might be better for both Sakura and I to get one." I follow.

"I think we should try this one out before buying another one," Sakura suggests. "It would be a waste of money to purchase another one if this one doesn't help."

"Sounds good. The best way to settle this would be to give it to the person with a higher perception stat, but you can use it if you want."

"Are you saying you have a higher perception stat than me?" Sakura demands. I notice a competitive light in her eye.

"No, I'm just offering it to you to avoid any disagreements."

"Well, I think it should go to the person with a higher perception stat."

"Okay, that's fine. Mine's thirty."

"..."

"What's yours?"

"...Twenty-eight," she says quietly.

This confirms a couple of things. First of all, she shouldn't have lied about her perception stat, or she likely would have said hers was higher than mine. This could be an act with some ulterior motive, but that's incredibly unlikely. She also didn't lie to me when I gave her a very easy opportunity to do so. Hopefully, this means she trusts me even if we don't get along all the time. Feeling heartened, I throw on the Talistone.

"What do you want to do now?"

"Let's go to the dungeon!" The pouting flower girl blossoms as she excitedly gives her suggestion.

"Sounds good to me. Josh?" He nods, and we head back into the forest.