hermitscave

Chapter 166 - Conspiracy

 As Quato sneaked through the streets of central Saniya, he understood that truth was a dull weapon in the face of raw power. Never before had he been more aware of his own weakness, more isolated. No one was by his side, none of his ghost brothers there to support his cause.   

Before the king had left, he had assigned Quato to serve under Official Bombasticus, as a sort of liaison between the castle bureaucrats and the temporary administrator. After all, the officia...

Chapter 161 - Plans to be Foiled

 “What do you mean, 'you do not want to leave'!?” Out of her mind, Tamaya shouted, her finger pointed at her elder brother.

“What can I say, this place is quite comfortable, so I decided to stay for a while.” Fadelio decided to tease his little sister a bit.

Out of the window, he overlooked the low houses huddled in the shadows of high mountains.

“But... you have to get back to Saniya! You need to leave this place! What happens if that idiot kin...

Chapter 156 - Weather

 Before Betucio could act on his impulses and try out the guard's skill, the second guard returned and called him into the back room. As he entered, the governor was hit by a wall of heavy air. With no windows, a hot and damp atmosphere had built up inside the shack. Even though the room was almost empty, it didn't help much.   

Only a single desk stood at its center, far away from any walls and surrounded by doors. The desk of heavy dark wood was laden with papers an...

Chapter 155 - Travelers

 They had already known that the forest would be the most dangerous part of their journey. However, the fake bandits still stopped them much sooner than they had expected.

“Halt!”   

One of them marched ahead, supposedly their leader. Unlike what one would expect from a merchant, his posture was straight and his gait was filled with power. Even his equipment looked shiny and new. Though of course, the leader looked far less exceptional among his men of ...

Chapter 160 - Gift

In the distance, the evening sky colored the village in a fiery red, just as the flames within the village walls colored the sky. Puma looked down the tree he had climbed and took a firmer stance on his branch, before he focused his eyes. His eagle-eyes enlarged the image and allowed him to miss no detail of the army's 'procurement'.

The worst of it had happened around the town hall. As the place to store the wheat of the city, it had become the first target for the warriors. Nothin...

Chapter 165 - A Sacrifice for the Future

 Well, this feels quite familiar.

Just like he had done a year ago, Corco stood in front of a spoiled young master who styled himself as a great warrior. Just the same, there was a ring of spectators around him who expected him to lose. He wasn't even that much of a fighter. Why did he always end up in these weird positions?

“Although you have a large mouth, in the end you still lack the resolve of a cultivator. Since you are not man enough to fight this ...

Chapter 164 - Plans and Ploys

 “So, you failed in your task.”

His arms crossed in front of his chest, Tlaloc tried his hardest to look imposing. Attitude was important for a great Swordsaint like himself, that much his master had taught him. How else could his subordinates respect him? Even more, he was angry that his disciples had failed to fulfill his wishes. What use were some low-class cultivators if they could not follow simple instructions? However, even though the dogs lay before him on their kn...

Chapter 163 - Two Meetings

 “Lord Huemac, what a lovely home you have.” With his best merchant's smile, Croco marched through the dim room, towards the imposing figure of Chatra Huemac. The fake compliment was an attempt to light up the archaic surroundings.

Not only was the lord's figure lit with hot coals from behind his back, he also sat elevated on a crude dais of stone. Even though the king stood tall, the seated Chatra's silhouette still stood above. A heavy robe, folded and stitched in comple...

Chapter 162 - Plots and Plans

 “How peculiar.” Doctor Itzali said, as his head swayed left and right to observe the sutured wound. Just as he tried to touch the stitches again, Corco slapped his hand away.

“Don't touch that, weirdo. What are you, twelve?” Annoyed, Corco put away the bloodied bandage. “It's been three days now. How are you still surprised?”

“Who would come up with a technique like that?” The doctor's eyes were still transfixed by the king's shoddy workmanship.
2019-07-12 04:14:08 +0000 UTC View Post

Chapter 159 - Antipyretics

 “Wait, King Corco. We will not get involved, will we?” Before Corco could get anywhere close the doctor, Wacoca held him back by the shoulder.

“What do you mean, 'not get involved'? This is our chance to win over a genuine Chutwa doctor! You think I'll just let fate pass me by?”

“What do you mean by 'we'? I am in no way involved in this plan. In addition, how is this man suddenly of value? Did he not steal your coin and call you a filthy barbarian?”
2019-07-07 23:06:08 +0000 UTC View Post

Chapter 158 - Turning Winds

 “I would prefer if we did not have to wear these,” Wacoca said, as he tugged at his new Chutwa clothes. To the prince who was so used to the freedom of the open sea, the dark robes that covered most of his body must have felt restrictive.

“You don't want to be lynched in the streets, do you?” Corco grinned as he wondered what would happen if the verdant prince walked the streets with the clothes of the pirates who would always raid these shores.

“The people...

Chapter 154 - Vice

 “Great master, please let this poor mortal go,” the slight tremble only made the woman's light voice sound more attractive, but no amount of beauty would change his course.

“Please excuse me, Miss. This warrior cannot comply. The orders of the house need to be fulfilled.” Kizco, warrior of house Rubria, looked back with a frown. This wasn't the first time he did this sort of work for his master. After all, women were one of the few past times the people of Yakuharra ha...

Chapter 157 - Reunions

 As soon as he saw the town of Hueatlan on the shore, Corco knew that even here, the old adage of this world held true: Wherever he had gone, there had been a rich west and a poor east.

Although the region of Xallisco, land of the great Lord Huemac, sat within the tropics and right along the water, Corco couldn't see a single tree. Maybe it was the distant mountains in the north, or the westerly winds which blew across the endless land of Chutwa, but the town of Hueatlan was su...

Chapter 153 - Loyal or Stubborn

 This wasn't the first time Inri found herself within the hallowed halls of the Triumvirate, but she still felt out of place. During her last time as speaker she had managed to arrange this extraordinary meeting of the Triumvirate, to let the two kingdoms at war work out their differences with the help of a third party. However, like in previous meetings she had been overlooked or talked down to like a child. Neither her youth nor her gender helped her cause in that regard. While she loo...

Chapter 152 - Family Ties

 “So then if the world follows common laws, would it not follow that we cannot act on anything? Would we not also have to suffer under the same rules, be slaves to them?”

While Corco sauntered along the harbor and tried to forget about his worries for a moment, Sumaci followed along. As always, she asked her tricky questions with an eager face.

“Of course not, Lady Sumaci. After all, Pacha has created the world for humanity to conquer. Since the Divines have ama...

Chapter 151 - Underwater

 After their fleet had moved into the heart of the Verdant Isles, Wacoca had returned to his duties at the bough of their flagship. Although he had left behind his guest, Corco didn't really mind. After all, they needed their captain to navigate through the tricky currents and complex terrain if they wanted to reach their goal in one piece.

This was one of the main reasons the Verdant Isles had remained independent from the powerful Chutwa Empire at its doorstep: Without any kn...

Chapter 150 - Stubborn

 Even though he had spent the last year in Saniya, Corco had never found the time to travel across the Verduic Sea. All that kingdom building had kept him busy. Now that he found himself with some time to appreciate the beauty around, everything seemed strangely familiar. Although it had been many years since he had last visited the waters to Medala's east, the old image in his mind created a perfect overlap with the present.

Before him stretched an endless sea of green. Strang...

Chapter 149 - Spread Thin

 Dim like night, the light of day wormed its way through the drawn curtains. At some point, a single sliver of sunlight had found its way past the northern blockade and opened the path for its brethren, to create a path between the window and the weathered map in the room’s center.

For once, the windows in Qarasi Castle’s command room were barred. Although they needed lamps to light up the room even under the midday sun, they had already underestimated their enemies once. N...

Chapter 148 - Change in Direction

 “Today, we honor those who have given their life in duty. Their bravery and commitment has given us all pause, and will forever burn them into our hearts. Thus, we entrust our comrades to the waves. Able Seaman Pehrsonn, shipwright Alyn...”

As Bas counted off all the fallen from the last combat, Atau looked over the bodies covered in rough cloth. In the end, their losses had been far more than he could have ever imagined. Six men had died as they tried to cross past the en...

Chapter 147 - Pessimist and Optimist

 “Their ships appear far less impressive than we thought, captain.”

“Hmm.”

While Bas had his spyglass directed south, Atau only stared ahead. Past the main deck and the forecastle, he looked upon the roaring waves on their course, and the depths beneath. To most sailors, the darkness of the sea was a great terror, but it was much worse for a Yaku like him. After all, they believed the underworld to sleep right beneath the waves. Nothing would be harsher than t...

Chapter 146 - Splitting Up

 “How are they still behind us?” Atau asked, more to himself than to anyone. Even so, his first mate gave his dutiful answer.

“They might have learned their lesson after last time,” a smooth voice answered him. “Although we managed to run rings around them back in the day, even the Bornish would learn their lesson. I think they might have come up with some trick to cope with our superior navigation techniques.”

“While I do appreciate the thorough answer,...

Chapter 145 - Superstition

High up in the sky, the sun shot its rays onto the crew and captain of the Homeward, the flagship of Atau's fleet. Although the celestial mother did its best to ease the icy grip of winter, a constant wind blew from the east and carried with it the dreariness of the open seas. Beyond the horizons in the east would be the serpent cliffs, an inauspicious place that had almost killed their great ancestors, if the old legends rang true. 

Despite its source, the breeze was ...

Chapter 144 - Unfounded Worry

 On the walls below, the wolf mercenaries had mixed with the local southern warriors and spent their time under the midday sun. The smoke from their fires rose into the sky to mix with the smoke Corco could see in the distance. Since his arrival, the smoke was all he had seen of the enemy.

“How many days does that make?” Corco asked.

“Four, boss.” Dedrick replied.

“I don't like it. What is my good uncle doing over there? Where did he get all that p...

Chapter 143 - Supply and Demand

“This turned out a lot easier than I thought.”   

From his balcony, Dedrick looked onto the enemy's attack, or whatever one could call what they had mustered. By now King Pacha had given up on his attempts to just rush them down with fast cultivators, so the business of small troops rushing between the walls was gone.   

Instead, they had been replaced by front line infantry with heavy armor, as well as an array of siege weapons. They had brought no...

Chapter 142 - Purpose

Up close, Qarasi Castle looked far more impressive than it had from within the central army's camp. Like the winding curves of a snake, the smooth, gray walls towered above Yucao, into the sky. His stomach contracted, and he felt reminded of a giant, gray leviathan, laid around the castle to obstruct their path. However, even in the face of mythical beasts Yucao had no fear. For he was one of the great climbers of House Pluritac, and his mission was to scale Qarasi Castle. All his life he had...

Chapter 141 - Glory

Sharp eyes gleamed towards the goal of their journey. Behind his back, he could feel the support from his men, one and all ready to sacrifice themselves for their king. However, although his warriors were ready to prove their honor, many of his subordinate lords lacked the vigor of their forefathers.

“King Pacha, we should be careful in our further approach. The men are tired after all,” a shaky voice came from his side. Annoyed, King Pachacutec of the Central Kingdom turned his eye...

Chapter 140 - Opening a Path

 At the foot of the hill, a crag split the lands north to south, like a giant had drawn it with a shaky hand. On the hills around Cashan, the great troops of the region had come to meet and plan the future. On the crag's right sat the troops of Pahuac Villca, back from their mountain homes to welcome their king. On the left sat the bandits of Uchu Villca, here to take revenge for their leader.   

Behind the hill sat the king's armies, a giant troop of red, silver and ...

Chapter 139 - Weaklings

“Go, go! Move it!”

When Fadelio's scream ran across the clearing and across the fording, another of the older master craftsmen stumbled on the slick rocks of the stream and fell to his knees. At least the ghosts had constructed a rope across the waters for the commoners to pull along on. With their bodies secured, no one had been injured on their path through the shallow name river. However, after all this time the commoners still hadn't crossed the stream. Never before...

Work in Progress - Chapter 2

The sun stood high above my head and warmed my sleepy body. It was another perfect day in Astralis. Across the road a small bird dove onto some trash to carry away. Clever little things. Nate took his sweet time, so I checked my phone. The map showed him close already. Once I had figured out my orientation, my head turned left to find my new colleague. 

Nate sauntered towards me, but then again, Nate was never in a hurry. He gave a little wave and I waved back, my smil...

Chapter 138 - Burden

“Official Fadelio... what... shall we do?” a breathless voice reached Fadelio from his back.

“March, you idiot!” the king's official turned his head and shouted towards Rimaq, the old papermaker. Sweat streamed down the uncouth man's face like starchy water down pressed wood pulp, as his chest heaved like a press itself. For now, the official decided to humor the commoner, and followed his example.

“Of course we do!” Along with his shout, the middle-aged m...