Dawn's Obsession

The prospect of an Emperor who enjoyed ships and the sea, made the tale much more viable. If none of the past Emperors had such interests, the chances were it was only that, a tale. Poorly written and perhaps left with other tales in that area of the library. That didn't seem to be the case anymore.

Though they didn't mention anything about an island, or new race. Hector left on a few voyages during his life. He returned from all of them, and then something strange was written. 'After Emperor Hector passed, the new Emperor Victor announced plans for a large project'. There were no details of what project he announced, but this was Hector's history. I had to check out Victor's history next.

Perhaps that could be suspected, after they mentioned a large project. They worked on the first Falcon. At that time, the project was called the Sky Bird Project, but later on the new Emperor gave it the name Falcon. That name remained, even after many years passed. 'Unfortunately, there are no details here. Doesn't say what they used, or how they built it. Well, it's not like the Imperials would allow such information to be on display. This is just the history… If it's true', I figured.

Whether it was real or not, that had to wait. Without proper means to get there, no one could find out. 'I wonder where that father of mine is right now… Maybe he's even lazing around, calling to be 'busy'. I hope he already met grandpa', I thought and left the Emperor's area.

They had some incredible figures on display, at least according to their deeds. I couldn't be a hundred percent sure the descriptions were real. Imperials or whoever wrote these things down could colorize some events. Albeit, not everything fell under that category. There were some soldiers who were remembered for their bravery, or soldiers who rose through the ranks thanks to their achievements. For cases like such, there was no need to be suspicious. Since, why would they lie about some sort of soldiers.

I've checked out most of the areas, and found Teri and Tara in one of them. Teri was mostly interested in the weapons on display, while Tara simply passed time with him. Since we saw most of the things inside, we decided to search for Dawn. "Do you know where she went? I haven't seen her at all", "Hehe, we haven't seen her either… Neither were we looking. She must be around here somewhere", Tara replied.

The best bet was a section with archers, and that's where Dawn was. She stared at one of the portraits of an archer, as if trying to absorb some sort of skills from him. "Hey, have you checked out everything? We've managed to see most of the figures here already", I asked. "Huh? Oh, it's you guys. I'd like to stay a bit longer", she replied a bit absentmindedly.

Tara walked over to the sign, and read the description. "According to this text, he wasn't any particular heroic figure… Did you fall in love or something?", Tara teased. "Did you forget your brain before leaving the tavern?", Dawn remarked. At that point, me and Teri decided to step in, and prevent any sort of public arguments between them.

"Why are you staring at this figure?", "... I'm not sure. Something's weird about this guy". Her reply made us even more confused. That archer was like many others inside the building. He didn't have great achievements, nor didn't look imposing or whatever.

"You didn't notice anything odd here? Take a look at the portrait", she added. We observed the portrait a bit, but there wasn't anything out of ordinary. Maybe except the poor state. "It's an old portrait, what do you expect? This guy lived a few hundred years ago", I said. "Come on, use those eyes of yours. Don't tell me you guys are blind. Take a proper look", she urged us.

Something was either off about that portrait, or Dawn lost her mind. I gave it a second and more detailed look. "... You mean the bow? Maybe other parts of the portrait got damaged. That's why it looks cleaner and better", I said. "What are the chances? The man in this portrait is hard to make out, but the bow is clear. My question is, why? Moreover, where's the bow? Others had their weapons or arrows on display. This guy doesn't have anything except the portrait and a description. Not even his armour or a piece of cloth", Dawn explained.

Though her points sounded right, I couldn't help but think she went mad. "Okay, so it's weird. What's your point though?", Tara asked in my place. "Like I said before, I'm not sure. Something's off here, and I'm trying to figure out what", Dawn replied. "Dawn, we can't stay here forever. I'm not sure why you are so bent on that portrait, but what can we do? Have you asked anyone who works here? Maybe they'll provide some answers", I asked.

"That's another thing. Most people don't even remember this guy being displayed here. They weren't familiar with the figure, or had recollection of seeing it… I know this sounds stupid", she replied. 'Hmmm, maybe Curly can check this out', "Hey, can you check whether there's something wrong with this portrait?", I asked Curly quietly.

Curly agreed, and quietly left my neck. She sneaked behind the cabinets and other items on display, until she reached the portrait from behind. After a while, she returned but found nothing suspicious. "See, even Curly can't find anything off", I said.

"Perhaps, but that bow in the portrait… I'm not going to keep you here. You guys go to the next place, I'll stay here for a while", she replied. I looked at Tara and Teri as if saying 'Is she for real?'. Well, Dawn was for real, and intended to stay with that portrait. We weren't sure when she'd be willing to leave, therefore she needed a map to return to the tavern.

I drew the route for her, with all the necessary clues then handed it to her. "You have some money left?", "Yes, don't worry about me. I'm not a kid, you know? We'll see each other later", she replied before we left.

"What do you think?", Tara asked me outside. "I'm not saying she went mad… Yet. This is not her usual behaviour though. I'm a bit worried, but let her stare at the portrait. Once she finds nothing, she'll give up", I replied. "Anna's right. Dawn's a grown up, she can take care of herself. Anyway, since we visited all three places, it's time for the arena. Hehe, I can't wait", Teri said.

Teri was really excited about the arena, so we headed there even though it was getting late. To our surprise, the crowd wasn't small. We then learned that evening battles were the best and most prestigious. That was because people finished their work already, and had time to watch the battles.

"Hello, would you like to spectate a battle, or are you a member of the arena?", the person at the counter asked. "We'd like to spectate a battle. Are there any to watch?", "Yes, we have three battles prepared for this evening. All of them include Silver Ranked members, would you like to purchase the tickets?", she replied.

We didn't know what 'Silver Rank' meant, but the tickets weren't cheap. For a good seat, one had to pay at least ten gold coins. For an excellent seat, in excess of fifteen gold coins. That fortunately included all three battles. "Since you made so much money, pay up", I said to Tara. "Now wait a minute. You have…", Teri nudged her before she finished.

"Fine, I'll pay. We'll take…", this time I interrupted her and said, "We'll take those seats closer to the stage". "Certainly. That will be thirty-six gold coins altogether", the woman behind the counter said. Tara stared at me, but paid nonetheless. "I'll remember this", "What? It's not like you are poor anymore. Besides, what's the point of watching these battles from far away?", I replied. With our tickets sorted, we headed toward the spectators stands.