Chapter 16 - Game Time

“So, what’s your name?”

Dawn sat on a block of wood she grabbed from the forest, watching the failed rebels kneeling on the ground before her. People of Plerith slowly began gathering around, watching the public interrogation of the rebels.

“Spencer,” the leader of the rebels mumbled.

“Why did you attempt a rebellion?”

Silence.

“Hrm. Well, resorting to torture when you failed to cause any harm seems like an overreach. So, until one of you talks, none of you get any food. Lynn, keep an eye on them to prevent them from being fed. They are allowed water, though.”

“Alright, Commander! By the way, there’s a trader in Foxshire right now.”

“Very well.”

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“I presume you’re the empress of this town?” the stranger asked.

“I am. My name is Dawn Faith. What is yours?”

“I am Rene, your majesty. And I work as a trader for Crialand.”

“And your wares?”

“Ah, but of course!” Rene clapped her hands, and two other strangers stepped forward, then set down and unfurled large fur bundles. Inside were a few knives, spears, and furs. The spears and knives had a few styles, of differing woods for the handles, and stone or bone for the blades. Dawn ignored most of them, as they were of poor quality. But a spear with a bone on it caught Dawn’s attention, as something was… off about it. Dawn kneeled, inspecting it closer.

Is that… magic?

“So, how much for this spear?”

“Ah, you have a good eye. Made from a powerful monster, the legendary Vasquich, its power remains even in that spear. It’ll cost a measly month of food.”

“In what form do you want your payment?”

“Let me and my guards rest for the next month, and we’ll leave and hand you the spear. Room and board, please.”

“Very well, I’ll see what I can do.”

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Dawn swiftly found Samuel and began to discuss whether there were any free rooms.

“None currently. We can make one, but it’s going to take a week or so, as we’d need to expand the walls.”

“Alright. Clean out my room, and we’ll offer that. Afterwards, expand the walls a large amount. Make a lot of housing, and save some for visitors.”

“Understood.”

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“Luckily, we’ve found a room for you three. Please, ask if you have any requests for amenities.”

“Then, how about a game? You pick two members of your town, and we test our loyalties against each other. We ask questions and figure out who’s closer to their allies. And the winner gets one item that belongs to the other! I’ll offer you a free item, besides your purchased spear, and if I win, I get something of yours.”

“I see no reason to reject, besides a lack of wager from me. Would an ogre under your command suffice?”

“Why, that sounds lovely. Now call your two friends.”

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“So, here’s the game. We each ask 5 questions for the other team. Those questions must be something all members can answer, so no unfair questions like ‘how many wolves are in the forest?’ And what the answering team needs to do is have the same answer as each other, but you’re not allowed to talk to them. And to prevent cheating, we’ll each tell our answers to a third party. Here, I’ll ask an example question. What is everyone's name on your team? Each of you tell the answer to Samuel.”

Dawn, Rosalia, and Stevin each answered the question.

“The same answer from each of them,” Samuel answered.

“See? We’ll take turns asking questions. Any further questions?”

“Who’s going to ask first?”

“How about you go first?”

The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.

“Alright. What is the name of the town you are from?”

The merchants' side all whispered the answer, followed by Samuel's confirmation.

“My turn. Where is Dawn from?”

Dawn’s team all came up and answered. Dawn whispered, “I don’t know.”

“The same answer,” Samuel confirmed.

“Which of these eight directions,” Dawn pointed in 8 directions, “is closest to pointing to your town?”

The merchants answered, and Samuel denied their answer.

Must be between two of those directions.

“What did… they,” Rene pointed at Stevin, “have for dinner last night?”

I don’t know. Then…

Dawn whispered, “Be sure to remember where they pointed and the name they gave.”

“But your answer?”

“Boar.”

Dawn stepped aside, waiting for the reveal.

“Differing answers,” Samuel said.

Each of us asked 2 questions, and got 1 right each. I’ve gotten what I want out of this, so I just need to figure out how to win from here.

“What is the name of the beast used to make the spear I’ve bought?”

“Same answer,” Samuel confirmed.

“How many people live here in Foxshire?”

“Differing answer,” Samuel announced.

“Three questions asked now! And we’re up an answer! Can you turn this around?”

“Perhaps. How many knives were included among the wares you offered?”

“Same answer,” Samuel said.

“What house is my team going to stay in?”

“That question seems unfair,” Dawn argued.

“Ah, I agree. Then, how many people are on guard at the front gate right now?”

“Different answers,” Samuel said.

“Do you want to play one final question, because you’ve lost!”

“This game was mainly for fun, so let’s play. What is my title?”

“Different answers,” Samuel said.

“Then, my final question is, what leader doesn’t understand their people?”

“Myself,” Dawn answered.

“Different answers,” Samuel answered.

“Wow! I win!” Rene cheered.

“Very well. I will return with the Ogre I promised shortly.”

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As Rene said, I do not understand my people. How should I learn more about them? Talking might work, but they’d be nervous. And asking may miss what they themselves don’t notice. I’ll follow them for a day, then ask.

When the next day came, Dawn set out, picking a farmer to follow. They got up in the morning, set out to the fields, watered their plants. They then cast [Rapid Growth], having their vegtables grown to ripe, before kneeling down in exhaustion.

“Hey, Mitu! How are you doing?” a different farmer asked.

“Tired. That spell is exhausting.”

“Hey, it’s better than passing out.”

“Yeah. At least I can cast [flame] without collapsing.”

“True. Well, I've got to check in on the others, so pick your vegetables and head back soon.”

Dawn finally recognized the other farmer; they were the first one hired.

He’s settled into that role well.

Dawn returned her attention to Mitu, seeing him pick his vegetables and head back to Foxshire.

When he returned to town, he set down his vegetables and began to chat with some others, shooting the breeze with meaningless conversations, about the weather and the harvest. Until a conversation caught Dawn’s attention.

“So, you hear about Plerith’s attempted rebellion?” Mitu’s friend asked.

“Ah, yeah. They tried controlling an Ogre, did they?”

“Yep. But Dawn was so cool, wasn’t she?”

“Oneshotting that beast is exactly what Dawn should do!”

Ah. Fans. At least they have a positive opinion of me.

They continued chatting, saying nothing of importance. But, slowly, more farmers came into town. Eventually, the leader of the Farmers called everyone together.

“It’s time for the exchange.” He set several large sheets of pottery down.

The farmers began to share their food, setting down their vegetables. And when everyone had placed their food, they lined up while the leader move some food off the plates, keeping it clearly seperate. Then, the farmers walked through, taking some of everything. The leader kept an eye on the proceedings, making sure no one took too much. After verifying everyone took their share, they took theirs and began to eat. After finishing that, they stacked the plates and left with them, also taking the set aside food.

After dinner, Mitu continued chatting, eventually heading to bed.

What have I learned? I know little of their lives. They don’t brush their teeth, eat only one meal a day, and have no pastimes other than talking. I should introduce some hobbies. What would work? Rock Paper Scissors, and chopsticks. They should work for now. How to resolve the food? We have nowhere to store it. Hunting in the morning is still an issue. More farming? Everyone together only produces enough for everyone to eat dinner. I need to expand out farming and prep storage. Storage… I could make some buildings into cold storage. I could supply the cold with magic. How to expand farming, though. The issue is the lack of mana the farmers have, running out after barely making their batches of food. Perhaps there’s a way to reduce energy cost, but I can spare a portion of my week to grow the food for the week until a more permanent solution occurs.

With a longer-term plan made, Dawn spent the night meditating on coldness.