Chapter 30 - Dressing in leatherleaf style

The meeting finished shortly after the chief decided with the other fiznault council, the schedule Roberion needed to attend to. Roberion said his goodbyes to Kunglau and Likang. Only the two guards would accompany him.

First, he needed to get to the craftsman's quarters. There, someone would give him his basic supplies and equipment he needed, they also would take a look at his armor and fix what they could.

Most importantly, they would help him find materials to upgrade his die. He was counting on it to be one of his main tools to help with his task. Talking about the task, they still didn’t want to say the instructions he need to follow, only that he and Shade would close the gate these undead were coming from.

Later that day, he would be expected on the training grounds where an instructor would help him become in enough fighting shape for his task. Sadly, it seemed he will only learn a spell, but at least they would tell him the basics on how to learn them, it will probably be way harder without the help of the system. His perks were more about enduring pain than learning anything.

Finishing it, he would finally meet this Shade person, the fiznaults were vocal about not telling any information about them, that they should meet in person, Shade giving all instructions on the task. For Roberion, that seemed strange. The faster they gave him the information, the easier would be for him to plan for it. Honestly, he couldn’t blame them, though. He was an outsider. He had to say, not being a slave was good enough for him.

Walking around the city, the kids kept staring at Percival, all of them holding fruits. It seemed this fruity tactic has spread among the children.

“You can take the fruits Percival, both you and I know that if these guys wanted us dead, we would be already.”

“Sir, I’m a knight. I can’t be distracted, and I not a pet.”

“I’m not saying you are, and neither are the kids. They are just offering you some fruits. By what I know, knights also eat. Even if you don’t need, I know you like it.”

“I will think about that Sir, for now, let’s focus on the equipment.”

The craftsman quarters were near the chief’s place, located on the left side of the village. For his other destinations, he would need the help of the fiznaults and their wood rhinos to get to. He could dismiss Percival, but it seemed a good choice to have him. The fiznaults, especially the kids, seemed to like the capybara.

Reaching the place, he found a mix of open air crafting and some tents. The front seemed to have an establishment, where people get in and out fast. He couldn’t see what contents they carried, though.

Entering the place, he waited just a few minutes in a line before he could be attended with the crafter. The crafter clicked in its natural tongue, not getting an answer. The fiznault took a quick glance and took the device.

Even now, Roberion couldn’t distinguish who was a female or a male. He didn’t even know if they had a gender. Not trying to create any disrespect, and not caring much about it, Roberion just accepted it as it was.

“You are the Shining Crown the chief talked about?”

“My name is Roberion.”

“Yes, Roberion, that’s it. Sorry, you name is a strange one to us. So here we go…”. The fiznault takes a little bag, from there the fiznault started taking out a bunch of items. “So they told me you already had a good space bag. So here it’s leatherleaf armor, coming with gloves and footwear. Now show me what you need us fixed.”

“This armor needs a fix, it would be bet—”

“Second door to the right. Change it and give it to me.”

The leatherleaf equipment was all black, similar to the ones used by the citizens of the village. It gives a cool and soft sensation on the skin; it was not bad. He gave his old armor to the crafter.

“Does this leatherleaf armor have any magic?”

“Only the standard properties, being good for movement and swimming. The resistance is of a normal peak-mundane material, and it’s not a heavy armor, so try not to get hit often.”

The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

Roberion knew that the offer was too good to be true.

“Dont look at me like that. We are giving you supplies, but we still have an undead infestation to deal with. We will try not to spare expenses for your weapon.”

The crafter takes a look at the armor, the eyes of the fiznault glows, the gloves seem to take an ethereal tint. Inspecting the damage done to the armor, the rust even cleaning it with magic, the fiznault was analyzing for any defect and the quality it has.

“This is really an excellent armor, sadly all the magic it once has is broken and deteriorated. Ancient equipment didn’t have many fail-safes in case of heavy damage. Even now, if your equipment takes a beating, please give it to a crafter or blacksmith. Being quick is vital. Sometimes you can do a quick fix, but it’s always better to consult a specialist.”

“Talking about fixing, here are some supplies to fix you leatherleaf armor if you need. Always do a preventive check too. You wouldn’t like to discover that you armor was damaged before a battle.”

“That is enough about the armor. Show me you weapon.”

Roberion looks at Percival, “See you later.”

Percival reply with a salute, “Sir.”

Roberion dismiss Percival and takes a look at the die. “Being honest, I can’t actually give you the die.”

“A bounded weapon. I see.”, the fiznault extend its right hand, a magic circle being project from its palm.

“Don’t be afraid, just let the die touch my magic circuit”

Roberion looks expectant at the circle but relents. Guiding his palm and die to touch the magic circuit.

After 10 second, the circle vanishes. The crafter looks at Roberion in surprise.

“What a curious weapon, from the Distortion Line, no less. The materials from these lines are rare, but the lack of uses for these materials balances their prices. They make really good accessories to be used by illusionists, and other lines, but it’s really a niche material.”

“Distortion line? Can you tell me more about it?”, Roberion ask with interest.

“Didn’t people tell you that is bad for you to branch your line focus in the beginning? For the gods! I keep saying we need to demote the chief. He is an airhead. So what was I saying? Yes, it’s bad for you to get in contact and know too much of a line. It wasn’t by lack of tests.”

“All forces do the same. They take their young geniuses and try to cram their heads with knowledge. The result is just average young adults that didn’t exercise their imagination and reflection enough. They don’t reach anything beyond the Touched incarnation.”

“Dont take it the wrong way! There is not wrong with that though, most people blessed by the lines don’t need to go beyond living and doing a job they are proud off”, the craftsman gives an amiable smile to Roberion.

“But as you already have this weapon, let’s just say that distortion line is the trickster that like to mess with the other lines. By the details of your weapon, you could already see how crazy it is. In your case, this craziness it’s of the bad one. You won’t be able to bound with any other weapons, and it could be a hassle for you to use other weapons in conjunction with this one. This weapon just seems like a failed prototype, a legendary failure”

“Damnit, I thought the legendary incarnation meant it was a rare weapon or something.”, Roberion knew there was more to the weapon than it seemed, the knighthood being one.

“Its rare, it’s just that rarity doesn’t mean good. Like I have my own custom leatherleaf shoes, they are unique, but it doesn’t mean they are the best. The Incarnation tells you how complex is the magic and the connection with the line the item has, its like us. We were once Witnesses only capable of improving ourselves and doing some supernatural feats, but as Touched we can really try to reach the line and do magic by the use of spells.”

“But enough with that. I didn’t want to, but it’s time to call the seniors. These old folk will be insufferable for a month at least, I tell you!”

Roberion’s mental list:

Leafleather Boots

“They are leafleather boots” by Roberion

Type: Footwear

Tier: Peak-mundane

Incarnation: Ordinary

Line: ?

Enchantment: None

Leafleather Armor

“It’s a leafleather armor” by Roberion

Type: Armor

Tier: Peak-mundane

Incarnation: Ordinary

Line: ?

Enchantment: Swim?

Leafleather Gloves

“They are gloves and they are made of leafleather. I need to find an easier way of organizing these items” by Roberion

Type: Gloves

Tier: Peak-mundane

Incarnation: Ordinary

Line: ?

Enchantment: None