Master Of None

”You were practicing mixing in close combat to your shooting right? Well i figure you can’t land strong punches or palm strikes like Remey so why don’t you use a dagger?” Gil understood immediately.

”I was actually thinking about that too, but I am not sure how I would keep it in my hands when I fight while also pulling back an arrow.”

”Well we are going to look for a blacksmith so maybe we could have a special holster made that lets you put the dagger in near your your hand is when you draw your bow?” Walker gestured to right below the left side of Gil’s chest. 

”That could work, I could pull it out fast after I released an arrow then place it back while I drew the bow.” Gil started to envision the process. ”I have used a dagger before to fight a little since my system has some related skills but I have never really used them since I am always so far from my targets. But lately I have been worried about what would happen if I do not have my bow. I could basically be left out of the battle completely not to mention easily injured. I would be a liability.” Gil had realized this a long time ago but had decided to act on this shortfall in his techniques with the time they had before they left for the deeper sun hollow forest.

”That sounds like a great plan, the forest will be very different from the plains, I won’t be able to use my fire bolt or fire flower skills without causing a massive fire. I hope to learn water magic or maybe develop something else. I have yet to try out those new swords I got.” Walker joined gil In brainstorming new fighting techniques that may work in the forest. The two quickly rule out many of the longer ranged strategies they had used just due to lack of visibility. They decided that a weapon like the scythe Walker had used would also not work out so well since it would get caught on a tree if the area was crowded, after all most of the trails or paths in the forest were tight and weaved through heavy growths.

Before they had realized it the sun had started to sink down behind the horizon, ”My stomach is telling me it is time to eat.” Gil stood up from the patch of ground the two had been using as their drawing board.

”Yes let’s go see what we have to eat, I bet my mother has been experimenting with the fruit we brought back.” These words made Gil nearly jump in to a sprint. He really did like the fruits they had had in the demi-human kingdom. 

Walker did not feel like being left behind and picked up his pace, the two rushed inside to find almost everyone at the dining table, even Remey had beat them back.

”Well we thought you two would be outside all night! Come sit down and get your plates full, I made plenty of food tonight. Try some of the spicy roasted chicken, Midnight has been eating it and if you aren’t quick it will be gone before you know it.” Hilda had broken in to her old books and found some of the spices she had been hoarding. Tonight seemed to be many of the dishes she had been wanting to test. The two happily dug in while answering any questions Hilda asked on the dishes.

Everyone seemed to enjoy their meal, Walker even found that Maria had left the library to claim a seat next to Su for dinner. Su’s mother seemed to also be treating Maria with a lot of attention, fussing over her as she tried the spicy chicken which made her face red.

This was very uplifting for the party since they had promised Maria a better place to live, this was exactly the kind of life they wanted to give her. ”Maria, in a few days we are going to an event with some friends, after they will be coming to dinner. They can both use healing magic but more importantly have light elemental skills just like you. I hope you can find the time to talk to them a bit, they may just want to recruit you to the church.” Walker laughed a bit but realized Maria seemed worried instead. 

”You don’t have to worry, they are both very nice. The high priest takes very good care of anyone he comes in contact with, he even adopted and raised an orphan. I am sure you will get along well. Plus our friend Alice has a very unique light element skill, you can try to show off but she will definitely shock you.” Maria became much more curious than worried after Su reassured her.

”Walker were you even going to let me know we would have guests then? I need to prepare a menu and desserts and drinks. It’s for a high priest you know! They are much more refined than your tamer friends.” Hilda fell in to a mad fury trying to build a menu in her head. 

”Mother you don’t need to worry there is plenty of time. The auction we are going to is in a week, after it we will come here. The guild will have delivered all the horned rabbit meat we gathered while in the plains. You will have a lot of fresh ingredients!” This seemed to bring Hilda back to reality. 

The dinner started to pass by quickly leaving only the party to speak on their future plans. ”So Gil and I were talking about the gear we need. We will have some really good crafting materials but should look for more at the auction. Once we have gathered them we can have a blacksmith come over. Tomorrow I should head to the forge to see what interesting materials they have and also if a blacksmith would be willing to come over next week. Midnight I hope that you can join me tomorrow too, we can try to awaken a fire breathing skill, if we can figure it out you may be able to help us forge our gear.” This made Midnight much more energized, she had the image of dragon flames changing the solid metal to liquid in seconds ingrained in her brain.

”Sister says she will have the best flames even if she needs to try a thousand times.” Walker pet her head encouraging the behavior. If she had this drive to do so then the work would definitely pay off.

”We will need a dagger for Gil. Two shields of Su. Remey you really need some better light armor at least, I know it will need to be flexible to move in but it is really important that you have it. I am also thinking of having a bunch of basic weapons made. Oh and Gil you need to choose some arrow heads, I can use a new skill to add mana crystals to gear so if you choose some arrow heads that can have crystals added maybe I can make that work.” Remey was a bit annoyed that Walker wanted to weigh her down with more gear but she did not argue at his firm tone. Gil had nearly forgotten his withering wood arrow shafts that he had been neglecting for lack of good arrowhead materials. However now that they had their bronze dragon scales the scrapes from crafting other things would be perfect to reshape and make a bunch of arrowheads.

”Leader, do you have an idea for what shape my shields should be? I have some ideas of my own so that I may be able to move with them more easily.” Su had thought about this the entire walk back and while she cleaned herself up from their work at the cathedral. 

”I would prefer to hear what you think, it’s much more important for you to use them comfortably.” Walker wanted Su to feel more connected to her shields and not have something she did not desire forced on her.

”In that case I would like almost oval shaped shields. I thought that having rectangles shaped shields would cover the best space but they would also slow me down when I moved because if the wind resistance, If I have oval shaped shields with a point at the button I can stab them in the ground and use the earth to help brace myself. That also gives me a better edge to attack an enemy. If they can be rounded on the outside as well that would help me deflect attacks better. I do not want spikes or anything, what if I use them to brace up an ally?” These were all very viable options.

”Sounds perfect to me, in the next few days please try and draw it out so when we find a blacksmith they can take a look and analyze it. Gil that also goes for your arrowheads and dagger. Remey you are the easiest, since your gear will be light weight it will most likely not be anything super specific. Maybe you should get some gloves that can add damage to your palm strikes…”