Lis hugged Mahya and told her quietly, "Take care of John; he'll be lost for a while."
"Don't worry, he's my friend too."
"Also, take care of yourself and keep learning and progressing, but don't do stupid things anymore. Think before you act."
"I promise, Sensei," she replied with a smile.
Lis smiled as well and said, "You decided to adopt the name, eh?"
"On Earth, there is a saying 'if the shoe fits'; in this case, the shoe fits perfectly."
He gave her on...
2024-06-16 10:22:03 +0000 UTC
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According to my calculations, our voyage from Arno Atoll to Hawaii should have taken three or three and a half days at the most, but no one told the ocean that, so it was unaware of the fact and did as it pleased.
In the initial two days, the wind kept changing direction. At first, I tried tacking, but it was impossible. As I turned right to get some of the wind, it changed direction to the right. As I turned left to catch it, it changed direction to the left. I felt like the wind was p...
2024-06-15 18:50:12 +0000 UTC
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About an hour after we sailed from Guam, a fog started. Initially, the fog appeared as scattered pockets with areas of more visibility. But gradually, the fog became thicker and thicker until it seemed as if we were sailing through milk. The wind completely stopped, and a creepy silence enveloped the surroundings. I was at the helm, and it was a strange experience—gradually, everything became deathly silent.
I couldn't sail like this. The sailboat glided silently through the water, it...
2024-06-14 14:36:32 +0000 UTC
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Steering was boooriiing!
I tried to keep reading while steering the helm, but it was impossible. Although I could split my mind, I couldn't split my eyes. Trying to come up with something else to occupy myself with, I remembered my Storage. In Shimoor, I used to sort through it occasionally to organize my stored items, but I haven't done so in recent years. With all the shopping I did in London and Paris, in various cities during our European trip, and the extensive shopping in China, m...
2024-06-13 12:38:48 +0000 UTC
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When I woke up, something felt different, but it took me a minute to figure out what; I didn't feel the engine's vibration. When I went to the saloon, I glanced out the window and saw that we were in a marina, which completely confused me. I saw Mahiya sitting on the front deck of the boat, approached her and asked, "Where are we?"
"Yakushima."
"How? I can't possibly have slept for five days!"
"No, you slept four or five hours."
"So, how did we get here? According to o...
2024-06-12 17:09:14 +0000 UTC
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It felt like déjà vu, but in a weird, backward way. Mahya and I retraced our steps from two days ago and arrived at the same spot where we had previously stored the boat. It took almost five hours before there were no boats or ships around, but finally, the river was clear. I was SO glad Rue stayed with Alfonsen in Shanghai. Just imagining Rue in the dinghy for five hours made me shudder—I'll have a telepathic migraine for days.
We sailed into the marina only after dar...
2024-06-11 17:22:29 +0000 UTC
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We were on the other side of the Gate for eight days, and ten days passed on Earth—the skip wasn't bad.
When I presented Alfonsen with the plants I had collected, his eyes widened in awe. "Where did you find these magnificent specimens?" He asked, his voice full of admiration.
"Beyond the Gate. Can you use them?"
He nodded enthusiastically. "Yes! They are amazing."
"I'm glad. Enjoy."
Mahya proposed a detour to Shanghai to finish the boat before our journey to T...
2024-06-10 12:57:24 +0000 UTC
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At breakfast, Mahya said to me quietly, “Cast Privacy, please.” After I did, she continued, “I think we should stay here for a few days. Fusing all the crystals will take time and mana, and we can regenerate on the other side of the gate.”
“You are welcome to stay and use the Gate, but I have no intention of going there.”
“Why?”
“Because on the other side, there are over eight hundred corpses of stinking rats, which must stink even more now that they’re d...
2024-06-09 17:05:22 +0000 UTC
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While standing by the Gate in the morning, Mahya exclaimed, "Shit, we forgot Lis's advice about getting better armor. John, would you mind lending me armor again?"
I handed her the armor she had previously used and asked Alfonsen, "Do you have armor?"
He replied with a "yes" and retrieved a leather armor adorned with small metal plates in strategic areas, along with the largest shield I had ever laid eyes on. The silver-bluish color of this shield was unlike anything I had ever se...
2024-06-08 17:24:49 +0000 UTC
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2024-06-07 11:01:43 +0000 UTC
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I wanted to store the boat, but there were people around all the time, so finally, we locked the boat tight, paid extra at the marina for additional security, and took a taxi to the outskirts of Shanghai.
Opting for a more adventurous mode of transport, we took out our bikes and set off, Rue bounding alongside us. I reassured him, "We'll find a more spacious trailer for you, buddy," he expressed his approval with an affectionate lick on my cheek.
We arrived at Dayu Village and dis...
2024-06-07 10:56:57 +0000 UTC
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The morning we planned to leave Shanghai, I had a great surprise waiting for me—a message from Lis.
___________________________
TR. LM
"Inventor, Versailles, Hungry, Clueless"
Hello, my dear friends. I hope you are well.
First and foremost, the Dragon Realm is terrifying. Don't you dare come here before ALL your Traits are over 200 and your stealth skill has reached its maximum level of 25. I'm serious; don't you dare even think about it.
...
2024-06-06 19:54:17 +0000 UTC
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Authors note
I uploaded two picture collections to the Traveler's Photo Album collection and even figured out how to do it without spamming your e-mail.
So, if you like the scrap-book, head over there to see.
_-------------------------
Startled, I woke up to Rue's voice shouting in my mind, "No! Bad! Mahya! Bad!"
I groaned, rolled out of bed, and went to investigate the crisis. I found Mahya and Rue in the saloon, and Rue...
2024-06-06 15:17:37 +0000 UTC
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On our first day in Zhenjiang, Mahya first dragged us to a baby wipes factory and bought a ton of wipes. No, I'm not exaggerating; she bought one ton of baby wipes.
"Why do you need so much?"
"I converted the Clean Spell to an engineering skill. I need something to clean with, and these wipes are great."
After shopping, we went sightseeing. The search I did on the phone revealed that the interesting things here are mountains and hills, so that's what we saw. We visited Jinsh...
2024-06-05 14:30:41 +0000 UTC
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I was sitting on the deck, enjoying the sunset, when Mahya approached me.
"Did you make the list that Lis advised you to make of everything you need to do?"
"No ... why do you ask?"
"I need you to add something when you finally make the list."
"What?"
"Some kind of wind magic. I bought the spell Wind Funnel to steer the balloon, but you shouldn't buy one—you'd better develop it yourself."
"Okay, I'll add it to the virtual list."
"You probably should...
2024-06-05 08:38:25 +0000 UTC
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I had just spent a thousand mana to learn another book's language to find more information about familiars, when I heard Mahya cursing, "Stupid, archaic piece of junk!"
And when I heard Rue shouting in my mind, "Fix! Fix!" I went to investigate.
"What happened?"
"We were watching the Avengers movie, and the computer died."
Rue shouted telepathically, "Movie! Movie!"
Mahya and I both winced, and I said to him, "Rue, buddy, we're looking for a solution. Don't worry...
2024-06-03 15:58:29 +0000 UTC
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I was channeling Restore into the boat's body when Mahya came to me and asked, "Did you check the archive today?"
"No, not yet."
"You should."
"A message from Lis?"
"No."
I opened the Archive and saw the message she was referring to.
_________________
Tr. RVF
"Frozen-Tail"
I need your help urgently. Someone captured me after I crossed the Gate to Dirt, and they are currently holding me in captivity. They drugged me...
2024-06-03 11:39:28 +0000 UTC
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Authors Note
I had some requests to have a visual representation of the ritual John preformed with Stretch/Rue.
Finally, I managed to create something. So, if you're curious, head to chapter 52 and look at the bottom.
___________________________________________________
After dropping anchor near the Wu Gorge, I stood and scratched my head, trying to find a solution to store the boat without dumping us all in the water; then I facepalmed.
I'm an idi...
2024-06-02 19:45:57 +0000 UTC
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2024-06-02 14:27:20 +0000 UTC
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In the initial days following Lis's departure, Mahya and I felt sad and down at the hotel. To process my emotions, I played my guitar but didn't sing or learn new songs. He was my first real friend ever, and I had no experience with saying goodbye to friends. My wife's death broke me, and this goodbye brought up some painful memories. Our relationship was different, with a deep friendship instead of romance, but there was a close connection, and I had trouble processing the goodbye.
2024-06-02 13:36:14 +0000 UTC
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When Rabban crossed the Gate, a metal cage dropped from above and locked him in. Despite his efforts to retrieve a weapon, he encountered difficulties accessing his Storage. Something was blocking his mana usage, and he sensed a field of some sort. Despite his attempts to access the Archive, he was unsuccessful, and his efforts to identify the cage on the wall were equally fruitless. In his desperate attempt to glamour himself, he tried everything he could think of, yet none of his efforts yi...
2024-06-01 16:10:16 +0000 UTC
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We used the E-foils to get to Yangshuo, and it was FUN!
We sped down the river at a high speed, frightening some fishermen. Rue nearly collided with a boat, which I believed was intentional to express his feelings towards them. Meanwhile, Alfonsen showed impressive athleticism by performing figure eights and double jumping. When I tried it, I fell into the water instead of staying on the E-foil, feeling unfair since I believed my Agility was higher than his. I guess stats are not everyt...
2024-05-31 21:27:25 +0000 UTC
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Hi everybody,
It’s not part of the story, so if you’re not interested, don’t read.
Last week, I experienced firsthand that “friends are awesome.”
For three years now, I have been working as a translation subcontractor for an Israeli start-up company for Internet advertising. Josh, a cool American guy, is in charge of all the translators.
Throughout my time working with them, Josh and I developed a close and friendly relationship. While we don’t socialize o...
2024-05-31 14:50:46 +0000 UTC
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I continued working with Lis, teaching him all my Healer spells. After each spell, Lis usually needed a day to regenerate before we would move on to the next spell. During his breaks, I continued to practice with stones and had five stone balls in my fruit basket—or maybe now it was my “stones basket”?
He had already learned Healing Touch, Neutralize Poison, and Regrow Flesh. We were working on Fortify Life Force when Mahya came running and shouted, "I got it!" I got it!”
...
2024-05-31 10:59:37 +0000 UTC
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I was very excited to show everybody my stone ball; they were impressed and thoroughly examined it.
“Excellent, let’s try teaching spells,” said Lis excitedly, rubbing his hands.
We went outside, and Lis said, “Show me the parts of your personal information that have spells.”
I streamed mana into my profile, and it popped into visibility.
“Did I mention how envious I am of your mana?” Lis asked.
I laughed and said, “Many times.”
He laughed...
2024-05-30 08:52:40 +0000 UTC
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2024-05-29 20:01:57 +0000 UTC
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Lis managed to find a local who was willing to take us on his boat along the Li River in search of a suitable parking spot for our houses. Fortunately, he had studied Chinese for all his Tai Chi books, a skill we didn't prioritize as most people spoke English.
When Rue saw the boat, he yelled in our minds, "No! No! Boat!"
Lis looked at him, and I could see they were talking, but they kept it between them. After a minute, Rue hung his head, tucked his tail between his legs, sighed ...
2024-05-29 13:40:35 +0000 UTC
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2024-05-28 20:27:15 +0000 UTC
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2024-05-28 19:08:31 +0000 UTC
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After Alfonsen finished with Human Rights, I had him read the Magna Carta, the Constitution of the United States, and the United States Bill of Rights. After he finished reading each document, we talked about it, I answered his questions and helped him understand how it applied to the system of government they had in their kingdom.
After that, I started giving him more philosophical articles and books, and we would discuss his questions. He had a lot of protests about many of the ideas,...
2024-05-28 15:32:03 +0000 UTC
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