Chapter 69
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Chapter 69
What appears to be the problem? I asked. The light of the sun coming into the window was late afternoon, filling the room with a golden glow. Raven said you seemed worried.
It occurred to me while I was off-line that we need to make sure were out of town before the map updates, Maxwell said, gesturing to the mapit showed the same positions as before, with our dot west of town. If the map updates again and shows us in town, the priest will know the villagers deceived them, regardless of what the old fart says, that will cause them unending trouble.
How much time until the next ping?
So far it appears to only update once a day, Maxwell said. We should still have several hours.
Then we should get moving. The rest was good, but its time to keep going. I grabbed Mercy and headed for the door.
Maxwell gathered up the map and followed me out along with Raven. The village elder spotted us, and we explained that we were getting on the road again to use the advantage wed gained to stay ahead. I thought I saw a flicker of relief passed through his eyes. The man was no fool, but hed felt that he owed us a debt. He made promises to provide us with further aid if we ever returned, but I doubted that would be a favor we ever called in. If that elder had horses, I mightve taken one, but the only one they had was a draft horse used for plowing the few fields they had.
As we left town and headed east, we fell back into our regular routine. After about an hour, Raven stopped. We should head into the woods.
Why? Maxwell asked. Thatll slow us down.
Because, if they see us on the road, they might think we actually stayed in town, or at least passed through it, Raven explained. But if they see us off the road when the map updates, they will likely think we skirted around the village and thats why we were slowed down.
She makes a good point. I gestured toward the woods beside us. Might as well. We need to be far enough off the road by the time the update happens that it doesnt look like we just stepped off.
And once it updates, we can come back to the road. Maxwell sighed and put away his guitar. These woods were far too thick for him to be practicing.
Our progress slowed. Aside from the map giving us valuable information about where our pursuers were located, it also provided great detail about the general terrain. The map itself was an invaluable resource. We were headed toward the plateau that made up most of the central part of Valdor. Unfortunately, that meant the terrain we now found ourselves traversing through was not only thickly covered in trees and bushes, but it was also steep.
I chuckled, that was the response I expected. If that is the path you want, then this is what I know.
As we traveled across the field, I explained as much as I could about being a mage. It was something I wasnt super familiar with, but I understood the basic principles. The other handicap I had was that she was an NPC, and I didnt fully understand what the difference was in how she learned magic. Though I was more similar to her now than I was to Maxwell.
***
The plains allowed us to travel quite quickly, and we eventually came across another road which led to small villages. We didnt stop at any of them, though Maxwell would fall behind and pick up any supplies we needed and catch back up. Our funds were getting dangerously low, but we couldnt afford to stop.
We pressed all through the day and into the next, and when the map updated, we were almost in line with the dots that were chasing us. The ones coming from the west were now both to the north and south of us. We took off into a sprint. This was the moment that would determine just how desperate our position became.
When Maxwell ran out of stamina, we were forced to stop running and settle for as fast a pace as possible heading straight east. The plan was for us to turn back north, but for now we wanted to get distance reestablished.
A small black explosion of magic next to my head made me stumble, and Raven started cursing. What the fuck am I doing wrong? I can enchant my blades just fine, why cant I get this simple spell to work?
I was thankful to basically be immune to dark magic, and tried not to laugh at her frustration. Such would not be good for my head. Like I said before, being a mage is more about will. You need to exert your will over your magic to get it to do what you want. That means not getting distracted and having an ironclad picture of what you want it to do.
Easy for you to say, Raven grumbled.
Im sure youll get it, I assured her. And once you figure it out for that simple dark bolt, youll understand what you need to do for other spells, and it should become easier.
Why is it so much harder than enchanting my blades? she demanded.
When enchanting, the magic is staying within your area of influence, with the bolt, youre trying to project it out away from you, very different applications. The daggers are also likely aligned with your general fighting style. I bet your claws in your lynx form have some natural dark magic attached to them, so doing it to the daggers is just a natural extension of your base nature.
Interesting I need to go test something. Raven hopped off my shoulder and turned into her lynx form. She darted off into the fields, and though she wouldnt be able to keep up that pace all day, for short sprints, she was far faster than I could ever be.
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Chapter 69
What appears to be the problem? I asked. The light of the sun coming into the window was late afternoon, filling the room with a golden glow. Raven said you seemed worried.
It occurred to me while I was off-line that we need to make sure were out of town before the map updates, Maxwell said, gesturing to the mapit showed the same positions as before, with our dot west of town. If the map updates again and shows us in town, the priest will know the villagers deceived them, regardless of what the old fart says, that will cause them unending trouble.
How much time until the next ping?
So far it appears to only update once a day, Maxwell said. We should still have several hours.
Then we should get moving. The rest was good, but its time to keep going. I grabbed Mercy and headed for the door.
Maxwell gathered up the map and followed me out along with Raven. The village elder spotted us, and we explained that we were getting on the road again to use the advantage wed gained to stay ahead. I thought I saw a flicker of relief passed through his eyes. The man was no fool, but hed felt that he owed us a debt. He made promises to provide us with further aid if we ever returned, but I doubted that would be a favor we ever called in. If that elder had horses, I mightve taken one, but the only one they had was a draft horse used for plowing the few fields they had.
As we left town and headed east, we fell back into our regular routine. After about an hour, Raven stopped. We should head into the woods.
Why? Maxwell asked. Thatll slow us down.
Because, if they see us on the road, they might think we actually stayed in town, or at least passed through it, Raven explained. But if they see us off the road when the map updates, they will likely think we skirted around the village and thats why we were slowed down.
She makes a good point. I gestured toward the woods beside us. Might as well. We need to be far enough off the road by the time the update happens that it doesnt look like we just stepped off.
And once it updates, we can come back to the road. Maxwell sighed and put away his guitar. These woods were far too thick for him to be practicing.
Our progress slowed. Aside from the map giving us valuable information about where our pursuers were located, it also provided great detail about the general terrain. The map itself was an invaluable resource. We were headed toward the plateau that made up most of the central part of Valdor. Unfortunately, that meant the terrain we now found ourselves traversing through was not only thickly covered in trees and bushes, but it was also steep.
I chuckled, that was the response I expected. If that is the path you want, then this is what I know.
As we traveled across the field, I explained as much as I could about being a mage. It was something I wasnt super familiar with, but I understood the basic principles. The other handicap I had was that she was an NPC, and I didnt fully understand what the difference was in how she learned magic. Though I was more similar to her now than I was to Maxwell.
***
The plains allowed us to travel quite quickly, and we eventually came across another road which led to small villages. We didnt stop at any of them, though Maxwell would fall behind and pick up any supplies we needed and catch back up. Our funds were getting dangerously low, but we couldnt afford to stop.
We pressed all through the day and into the next, and when the map updated, we were almost in line with the dots that were chasing us. The ones coming from the west were now both to the north and south of us. We took off into a sprint. This was the moment that would determine just how desperate our position became.
When Maxwell ran out of stamina, we were forced to stop running and settle for as fast a pace as possible heading straight east. The plan was for us to turn back north, but for now we wanted to get distance reestablished.
A small black explosion of magic next to my head made me stumble, and Raven started cursing. What the fuck am I doing wrong? I can enchant my blades just fine, why cant I get this simple spell to work?
I was thankful to basically be immune to dark magic, and tried not to laugh at her frustration. Such would not be good for my head. Like I said before, being a mage is more about will. You need to exert your will over your magic to get it to do what you want. That means not getting distracted and having an ironclad picture of what you want it to do.
Easy for you to say, Raven grumbled.
Im sure youll get it, I assured her. And once you figure it out for that simple dark bolt, youll understand what you need to do for other spells, and it should become easier.
Why is it so much harder than enchanting my blades? she demanded.
When enchanting, the magic is staying within your area of influence, with the bolt, youre trying to project it out away from you, very different applications. The daggers are also likely aligned with your general fighting style. I bet your claws in your lynx form have some natural dark magic attached to them, so doing it to the daggers is just a natural extension of your base nature.
Interesting I need to go test something. Raven hopped off my shoulder and turned into her lynx form. She darted off into the fields, and though she wouldnt be able to keep up that pace all day, for short sprints, she was far faster than I could ever be.
Chapter 69What appears to be the problem? I asked. The light of the sun coming into the window was late afternoon, filling the room with a golden glow. Raven said you seemed worried.It occurred to me while I was off-line that we need to make sure were out of town before the map updates, Maxwell said, gesturing to the mapit showed the same positions as before, with our dot west of town. If the map updates again and shows us in town, the priest will know the villagers deceived them, regardless of what the old fart says, that will cause them unending trouble.How much time until the next ping?So far it appears to only update once a day, Maxwell said. We should still have several hours.Then we should get moving. The rest was good, but its time to keep going. I grabbed Mercy and headed for the door.Maxwell gathered up the map and followed me out along with Raven. The village elder spotted us, and we explained that we were getting on the road again to use the advantage wed gained to stay ahead. I thought I saw a flicker of relief passed through his eyes. The man was no fool, but hed felt that he owed us a debt. He made promises to provide us with further aid if we ever returned, but I doubted that would be a favor we ever called in. If that elder had horses, I mightve taken one, but the only one they had was a draft horse used for plowing the few fields they had.As we left town and headed east, we fell back into our regular routine. After about an hour, Raven stopped. We should head into the woods.Why? Maxwell asked. Thatll slow us down.Because, if they see us on the road, they might think we actually stayed in town, or at least passed through it, Raven explained. But if they see us off the road when the map updates, they will likely think we skirted around the village and thats why we were slowed down.She makes a good point. I gestured toward the woods beside us. Might as well. We need to be far enough off the road by the time the update happens that it doesnt look like we just stepped off.And once it updates, we can come back to the road. Maxwell sighed and put away his guitar. These woods were far too thick for him to be practicing.Our progress slowed. Aside from the map giving us valuable information about where our pursuers were located, it also provided great detail about the general terrain. The map itself was an invaluable resource. We were headed toward the plateau that made up most of the central part of Valdor. Unfortunately, that meant the terrain we now found ourselves traversing through was not only thickly covered in trees and bushes, but it was also steep.I chuckled, that was the response I expected. If that is the path you want, then this is what I know.As we traveled across the field, I explained as much as I could about being a mage. It was something I wasnt super familiar with, but I understood the basic principles. The other handicap I had was that she was an NPC, and I didnt fully understand what the difference was in how she learned magic. Though I was more similar to her now than I was to Maxwell.***The plains allowed us to travel quite quickly, and we eventually came across another road which led to small villages. We didnt stop at any of them, though Maxwell would fall behind and pick up any supplies we needed and catch back up. Our funds were getting dangerously low, but we couldnt afford to stop.We pressed all through the day and into the next, and when the map updated, we were almost in line with the dots that were chasing us. The ones coming from the west were now both to the north and south of us. We took off into a sprint. This was the moment that would determine just how desperate our position became.When Maxwell ran out of stamina, we were forced to stop running and settle for as fast a pace as possible heading straight east. The plan was for us to turn back north, but for now we wanted to get distance reestablished.A small black explosion of magic next to my head made me stumble, and Raven started cursing. What the fuck am I doing wrong? I can enchant my blades just fine, why cant I get this simple spell to work?I was thankful to basically be immune to dark magic, and tried not to laugh at her frustration. Such would not be good for my head. Like I said before, being a mage is more about will. You need to exert your will over your magic to get it to do what you want. That means not getting distracted and having an ironclad picture of what you want it to do.Easy for you to say, Raven grumbled.Im sure youll get it, I assured her. And once you figure it out for that simple dark bolt, youll understand what you need to do for other spells, and it should become easier.Why is it so much harder than enchanting my blades? she demanded.When enchanting, the magic is staying within your area of influence, with the bolt, youre trying to project it out away from you, very different applications. The daggers are also likely aligned with your general fighting style. I bet your claws in your lynx form have some natural dark magic attached to them, so doing it to the daggers is just a natural extension of your base nature.Interesting I need to go test something. Raven hopped off my shoulder and turned into her lynx form. She darted off into the fields, and though she wouldnt be able to keep up that pace all day, for short sprints, she was far faster than I could ever be.
