Chapter 16: Ch. 16: Ganstown or Bust

The next morning they finally exited Petra's Woods and came across the main road.

Kate stood up in the cart to see, holding Yasu's shoulder for balance. She hadn't realized she'd been unconsciously expecting to see an actual asphalt road, which of course was not the case. Still, the road was paved with flat stones sunk into the earth, though there were plenty of potholes. The road looked almost as wide as a two-lane street, and disappeared into the distance in either direction across a prairie not much different from the one she'd initially been dumped in.

Yasu pulled the cart to a stop briefly so Kate could get a good look. “This is the King's Road. It stretches clear across Giltar. It took almost a century to build. Or that's the common tale, anyway.”

“Keep going that way,” Sethi pointed to their left, “and you'll reach the sea. Lots of harbor towns that way, as well as the capital. You'll likely head that way eventually. It's dangerous out there, so I assume once you're stronger you'll have to go there with your fellow Heroes. Sea creatures are some of the most dangerous beasts found outside of nests.” He pointed to the right as Yasu turned Bea that way, her hooves clopping on the stones. “This way to Ganstown, Yelkston, and some other towns Heroes will be heading to. And look, our first fellow traveler.”

A cart, nearly twice the size of their own, was slowly coming their way. As they got closer Kate could see whatever was piled in the cart was covered with a patched white sheet. The cart was pulled by two tarras, and the driver had a spear balanced across his knees. It had a broad metal tip with a wickedly sharp point and looked much more dangerous than Sethi's simple wooden one. There were three men walking beside the cart wearing thick leather armor with sheathed swords at their hips. They spoke amongst themselves quietly, but their heads were on a constant swivel.

Yasu lifted a hand by his ear in greeting as they passed. The driver gave him a slight nod, but the other Giltarians only eyed their cart distrustfully without speaking.

“Were those guards?” Kate asked once they'd passed.

Sethi nodded. “Yeah, must be some merchant or something bringing goods to a harbor town. No use trying to get information out of any of them, merchants usually try not to dally and don't speak to strangers much on the road. Paranoid of getting robbed, they are. We'll run across some regular travelers at some point that we can ask for news. Probably not many, though, this far out.”

Kate pulled up her map. It had filled in a little more now, and she could see the winding road they were on now. Interestingly, further ahead in the blank part of the map she could see a dot labeled 'Ganstown, distance ??'. Further on was a similar dot, 'Yelkston, distance ??'.

Right, Io had told her she could also fill in the map just by hearing about places. That would help with at least heading in the right direction in the future.

Releasing Yasu's shoulder, she took a seat again, though the ride was less comfortable now. The stones in the road made the wheels rattle and the cart shake, and sometimes they hit a loose stone or a pothole and the whole thing jolted. There was no escape from the wind or sun, which wasn't too hot but was bright enough to make her squint. She could hear the brothers talking to each other, but the noise of travel made it too hard to make out what they were saying.

“Well, this is going to get old fast. All right, Io, continue the lesson, I guess, before I die of boredom. Let's go over reputation and achievements.”

As you wish. At least Io's voice in her head was crystal clear. Reputation and achievements can net you titles and even other prizes such as the temporary stat boost your reputation earned you.

“Yeah, the bump to my constitution from the achievement was kinda nice. Two more free HP points, yippee.”

Some achievements are easier to earn than others. There will be quests that offer achievements as part of the reward. Others are simply ones you will earn by doing extraordinary things. Being the first to clear a dungeon, for instance, or helping to bring down a legendary monster. Reputation is a bit more nuanced. Due to unique circumstances and choices, a Hero may gain specific reputation that no one else may be able to earn. Your own reputation with the Peltins, for instance, is something you're unlikely to ever see anyone else have. Io bobbed slightly. You saved Hal. It's something no one else will do, especially in the way you did. On the other hand, sometimes specific reputation is something anyone can earn. Anyone who helps out a town to clear the monsters in the area may earn good reputation in that town. Likewise, anyone who goes on a crime spree in that town may earn negative reputation.

“Wait, you can earn negative reputation? What are the consequences for that?”

It varies. The most noticeable effect is that certain people, such as citizens of a town, will dislike and distrust you on sight. Say, for instance, that you went on the aforementioned crime spree. Not only will no one in town like you very much, but prices at shops may increase for you specifically. Guards may hassle you. Certain quests posted by citizens may be unavailable to your entire party just because of you. If your reputation is bad enough, you could be banned from the town entirely. Needless to say, if you have a bad reputation, you make not just your life harder, but every member of your party could be tarnished by association.

“So I assume when I go looking for a party they'll want to take a peek at my rep.”

That's the usual practice, yes. This early on, Heroes may not realize how important reputation is, but by the time you find other Heroes, most of them will likely be smart enough to demand a peek at your public stats.

“My what?”

We'll go over that in a moment. Remember that while they will want to look at your reputation, you should insist on seeing theirs as well. You wouldn't want to land in a party already deep in the red in reputation. Sometimes gaining poor reputation is unavoidable. You may accept a quest that will require a decision that will make one side unhappy with you. So you must learn to decide for yourself how much bad reputation you are willing to accept. Someone with a bad reputation in Ganstown, for instance, may still be worth partying with if you're already in Yelkston, since that reputation no longer has any bearing unless they return to Ganstown.

“Good point.”

As for public stats, they are the stats that anyone can see at any time if they have the See Status ability. It's a fairly common ability, but not one you seem to have. Perhaps you will obtain it later. A Hero with See Status will be able to pull up your public stats at will, though most of your information will always remain private.

“If I don't have the ability, how am I supposed to know if potential party members have bad reputation?”

This one was getting to that. Io began circling her slowly. If you wish to see someone's public stats, you must ask for permission and they must give it. Then and only then will you be able to see them. If someone were to ask for your own public stats, a query window will appear and you will merely have to agree or disagree to it. Your name, level, and title, however, will always be available for any Hero that looks for it above your head.

“Okay, so what information can someone see in public stats?”

Check and see.

“Uh... view public stats?”

A small window popped up with her basic information.

KATE – LVL 3 Support – Reckless Savior

Origin: Earth

Gender: Female

Main Class: Support

This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author's consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.

Secondary Class: Necrotic Healer

Reputation: +10

“It shows my subclass,” she said with some surprise. “So much for keeping it a secret.”

Giltarians are the only ones you should be hiding that information from, and they cannot view your stats at all. They cannot even see your name.

“But I could see Gren's name and level over his head.” She glanced at the brothers. After a moment their own names appeared. “If I focus, I can see any of theirs.”

Yasu – Giltarian – Lvl 5

Sethi – Giltarian – Lvl 6

Because you are a Hero. They cannot see yours. As for your subclass showing, that is important. Why recruit someone whose subclass focuses on crafting if you already have a crafter in your party?

“Hm. Good point.” She winced as they hit a particularly wide pothole, jolting her hard. “Can't believe I miss my little rustbucket car, even if that thing was one bad day away from dying on the side of the highway.”

The closer we get to civilization, the better the road should be, Io soothed. The roads will also be much better tended near big cities.

“So Yelkston is one of those starter towns, right? Is that where I was supposed to end up?”

It was likely your intended destination, yes. The monsters around the town will be low level, mostly one through five. Perfect for fledgling Heroes figuring out how to fight and loot. This one knows you hope to find more humans there, but they will likely have already outleveled the area and moved on to the next town by the time you get there. Yelkston is still worth the stop, however. There is always the slim chance there will be a few Heroes lingering there. More importantly, many shops there will be specifically stocked to equip new adventurers. You may find something useful.

“With all zero of my buds to spend, you mean. So what's next after Yelkston?”

There are two likely destinations Heroes would gravitate towards. Two towns not far from Yelkston both have monsters in the area that vary from level five all the way up to level ten. The key difference is that one of these towns, Halling, has a dungeon nearby. Heroes that have already made strong parties may want to try their hand at clearing it. It is one of the basic starter dungeons.

“Sounds like we should head there, then. A dungeon could help me catch up in levels, and maybe I'll have more luck finding a party. Especially if there's a shortage of healers.”

Sound deduction. We will make Halling our next destination after Yelkston if you wish. Io paused. There is one drawback to Halling, however. For you, at least.

“Oh?”

This one assumes you are counting on your subclass to land you a party and prove yourself. But this one has basic knowledge of all of the dungeons, and the one in Halling could be... a detriment to your particular spells.

Kate stared at it, feeling uneasy. “How so?”

The dungeon near Halling will be in a cave. You will be surrounded by stone. This one assumes there will be no trees or other plant life to siphon. In fact, it is not the only such dungeon. There are many that will be made of stone or ice that will make it impossible for you to draw mana from the environment.

“Oh my god.” Kate leaned back against the sacks of wares, rubbing roughly at her face and fighting back a well of panic. “Ohhh my god, I didn't even think of that.”

You understand now why there has never been a Necrotic Healer who has managed not to siphon life from nearby people.

“Damn it.” She took in a slow breath to calm her nerves. “Okay. Okay okay, I won't worry about this right now. I just have to try and level before I get there so my mana pool is bigger.” Another thought occurred to her, but she didn't dare say it out loud in case Yasu or Sethi heard her. In a pinch, she could draw lifesource from a monster, but it seemed dangerous. She'd have to figure out how to Leech one without getting her hand chomped off. And even if the monster was too wounded to fight her, it wouldn't have much lifesource left for her to pull at that point.

You will be all right, Io said confidently. Remember, all the other Supports will also be relying solely on their mana pool. You will simply have to learn to conserve your mana when possible. Triage your party members if needed; do not waste healing on a wound that will naturally regenerate outside of battle.

“Natural Regeneration isn't a Support-specific skill?”

No, it applies to all Heroes. The only difference is in the time needed to heal. Your own regen currently heals you one HP and MP every ten seconds. A Tank's may heal him every five or six seconds. A Fighter's may heal every fifteen.

“Why do Fighters heal slower?”

They are more vulnerable than tanks and more reliant on a healer; it encourages a Support to focus on the damage dealer between battles rather than themselves. A Tank is arguably the most important member of the party, and must be able to recover quickly in order to protect his or her party. A Tank's most valuable stat, aside from Defense, is their Constitution, and for their class specifically, this affects their regen time. A high enough level Tank may be able to recover from near death seconds after a battle is over, assuming they do not bleed out first.

“Wow. I guess they don't bother with healing potions then. Speaking of which, that's another solution to my dilemma. I can always heal my party with potions if I'm out of mana.”

This is a good route to take if you have a potion crafter in your party, yes. Otherwise the price of potions will add up quickly.

“They're not cheap, huh?”

No. They are in high demand, and their price reflects that.

“Figures. Almost makes me wish I had gotten that subclass.”

Those who follow the potion crafting path are very valuable to parties, Io admitted. Especially when there are not enough Supports to go around. A party with a member who has leveled up their potion making will likely see no need in recruiting an actual Support.

For a moment Kate felt a stinging regret that she had not chosen the Potion Master class. Then she shook the thought away. She would not have been able to heal Hal if she hadn't been able to fill him with lifesource. Her power had amazing potential, and she would just have to learn to work around its drawbacks.

“Ah hah, here we go,” Yasu said loudly enough to be heard over the rattling wheels. “Now we'll finally get some information.”

Kate got unsteadily to her feet, grabbing Sethi's shoulder. A pair of Giltarians were approaching, each riding a tarras. Sethi shouted a hello once they were closer, and the two slowed to a stop, watching the cart's approach warily.

Yasu pulled up alongside them, and Kate was filled with relief, though her ears almost seemed to ring at the blessed silence.

It was a man and a woman. Despite Io's earlier assurance that some Giltarian women wore pants to ride, this one wore a long blue skirt and was seated sidesaddle. They were both wearing broad-rimmed straw hats to protect their faces from the sun. Kate noticed the woman nervously reach down to put her hand against her saddlebag as if afraid of losing it. First the guards, now this clear uneasiness. The road definitely seemed unsafe, even in broad daylight.

“Hello there,” Yasu greeted cheerfully. “We're headed to Ganstown.” He jerked his thumb towards Kate. “Just doing a bit of trade and giving this young Hero a lift.”

The man and woman both looked startled at the sight of her, though she noticed her presence made the woman relax slightly.

Curious, Kate glanced above their heads.

Do not do that, Kate, Io warned.

Kate immediately jerked her eyes back down. “Why not?” she muttered out of the side of her mouth.

Most Giltarians who have dealt with Heroes learn to recognize that upwards glance. They may take offense that you are reading their information. Information that even they cannot see. It's more polite to simply ask their names.

“A lone Hero, way out here?” The man pushed up the brim of his hat slightly to stare at her and Io with frank interest. “What're you doing out here? Out on some job? Without a party?”

“Something like that,” Sethi said easily. “She did a small job for our family. We figured it'd be safer if we got her back to town ourselves. Are outlaws still a problem around here?”

“Yes.” The woman-- presumably the wife – scowled. “They thinned out a bit when the Heroes first arrived, but the second they moved on to the next town, the damned hoodlums came crawling out of the shadows again to waylay innocent travelers. We wouldn't be making this trip ourselves if it wasn't absolutely necessary. We haven't run into any trouble yet, thank Gurn.”

God of travelers and the homeless.

“Not now, Io,” Kate said under her breath.

The husband nodded back the way they'd come. “We heard tell of some travelers getting ambushed three or four nights ago, not thirty miles from town. You watch yourselves. I hope that Hero's stronger than she looks.”