The Hamlin didn’t have any place to stay nor did he have a dime to his name, so Roland took him home with him. Hamlin was amazed at the old house. They put him in a bed upstairs in the bigger open room. Hazel and Vivi were excited to see Roland. They all enjoyed a big meal that evening and Hamlin told the tale of Roland coming to the rescue.
The girls were thrilled, wanting to know every detail about the damsel in distress. They also wanted to know what she wore and how well a lady did trekking across the desert. They had a very inflated opinion of well to do ladies, or at least Roland thought they did.
That night Roland lay in bed thinking about all that had happened. He had gone to the ends of the world to get ingredients for his wonderful new bow. He had lost a friend in the process, and during the biggest adventure of his short life, he had to leave the bow behind and depend on his knives. Being flexible and able to depend on several different skills made all the difference in the world. It meant success instead of failure. He should continue to acquire new skills when possible. It couldn’t hurt. He opened his status panel to see what had changed.
Status
Level
29
Age
19
Health
340
Title:
N/A
Mana
790
Heath Regen
0.001/Second
Stamina
535
Mana Regen
0.0005/Second
Vitality
34
Stamina Regen
0.01/Second
Strength
38
Race
Half-Elf
Endurance
69
Bonus
Dexterity +2 per level
Dexterity
92
End +5 and Str +5
Wisdom:
78
Active Status Conditions
Intelligence
80
Animal Bond
Charisma
12
Available Points
5
He had gained another level and another five points to use. Everything was looking good but Charisma. Should he actually put his available points into that? Hazel would laugh if she knew he had done that. Maybe having a little more Charisma would be good for him. He pulled up his skills panel next.
Skill Panel
Tracking
Expert Level 8
Archery
Expert Level 3
Herbalism
Experienced 8
Toughness
Expert Level 2
Illusion
Expert Level 8
Meditation
Experienced 4
Knives
Experienced 5
Security
Beginner Level 6
Knives, security, and meditation had increased. Tracking, archer, toughness, and illusion remained the same. Normally, they had always been the skills to boost his level up. What skills should he work on next?
The next day, Roland and Shadow visited Eli. He had them escorted into his office immediately. There wasn’t any waiting around that day. He had Roland go over everything, including the location of the pirates and the pirates’ chest full of gold.
Roland handed over the sword of Captain Baal along with the papers he had taken. Eli spent a good amount of time looking at the letters. Finally, he looked back up at Roland. “Do you have any questions for me?”
Roland hesitated and then asked the big question. “Do you know who my mother is?”
Eli leaned back in his chair. “I’ve known ever since you showed me that knife of yours. It is one of a kind. Only the ruler of the Elves carried that knife, or the one who has been selected to inherit the position. Your mother left soon after an arranged marriage was planned. Your grandfather was trying to fix a marriage so that the elves could come together.”
Eli continued. “You see Roland, there are two main groups of elves. One side, your mother and grandfather, wanted to live in peace with humans. The other side, Tallesin Gremenors’ wanted to exterminate humans. Your grandfather thought that maybe if the two strongest families came together in marriage, they could come up with a compromise.”
Eli stopped before continuing his response and thought carefully about the words to use next. “Your mother might have agreed to the marriage, but it became obvious that the Gremenor family just wanted to use the marriage as a springboard for taking the throne for themselves. It was sad when your mother left knowing that the Gremenor family was plotting her death after the wedding.”
Eli looked back at Roland. “The bigger problem is actually you, Roland. By giving you that knife as her only heir, she has handed you the throne. She relinquished her claim once she gave you the knife. Now, how a Half-Elf would claim the Elven Throne is beyond me. Your grandfather has a few hundred years to go before he will be giving way to old age, so you have a few hundred years to think about your future.”
Roland’s head was spinning. This was too much. He couldn’t even think at the moment.
Eli reached inside his desk and handed Roland a pouch filled with coins. “Your payment for this job is one gold. The rest is a bonus. A bonus for killing Baal, recovering the gold in the hidden chest, and for bringing Saika back to us. We are hoping this act of yours goes a long way to keeping good relations with Karagandy. The leader is a hot head and he wants to rule the Canistan continent. We want to stay on his good side.”
Shadow and Roland went to the guild and paid their taxes. Imala was at the desk, cheerful as ever. They exchanged pleasantries and Roland tipped her his usual silver coin. She was always appreciative of the silvers she received from him. If she knew how much he had been given as a bonus, she would have fainted.
They went home to get things cleaned up. Hamlin was in the kitchen putting mana into Vivi and Hazel’s elixirs. Roland was a bit surprised. “How are you doing Hamlin? Did Hazel hire you to help with the elixirs?”
Hamlin took a break and gave his complete attention to Roland. “I’m doing this because I need to keep busy. I’m not allowed to practice healing in the country. Helping to make elixirs helps me keep busy and my mind off of finding a drink. Hazel said you often need healing. I can heal you, but only if you keep it between us. I owe you. I would probably be dead it you hadn’t intervened. For me, to be free from liquor is a miracle. If you would allow me to help with the elixirs, I would appreciate the opportunity.”
Shadow interrupted Roland’s thoughts. Your pack is getting bigger. Having a healer might be a good thing.
Roland looked back at Hamlin. “I would love to have you stay with us. Hazel needs someone who can add mana to the elixirs. I’m gone too much to be able to help her. Talk to her about your healing abilities. She might need your help at times. It will be between us, no one needs to know.
That night after dinner and the official notice that Hamlin would be staying at the house, Roland and Hazel went back to the office to discuss things. She sat down in the big chair behind the desk. It truly had become her office. Nothing in this room was Roland’s. It was all hers.
She smiled as usual. “What did you want to talk about Roland? Are you concerned about Hamlin?
Roland made himself comfortable in the chair across from her. “No, I think he can make it. If he falls off the wagon we will need to do something, but keeping him busy will help. He said he would do healings for us if we kept it between us. Don’t abuse that, for his sake and ours. I also wanted to give you three things.” He took out the pouch he had been paid with that day. He dropped it on the desk and it sounded heavy, gold coins could be heard settling into place. “This is my bonus for the rescue of Saika. It is 20 gold coins.” He pulled out another leather pouch but much smaller. “These are the gems I took from the Pirate Baal. They are a mixed batch of gems. You will need to figure out what they are worth.” He dropped the last small bag on the table and as h
e opened it, three small crystals tumbled out. “These I found in a cave near the coast in the Painted Desert.”
Hazel’s eyes grew big. “This is huge Roland. Those crystals are Fire Opals. Does anyone else know where you got these?”
“Shadow does, but he isn’t telling anyone and he couldn’t care less about them. If you want more, we could make a trip sometime and mine some. I found them embedded in a wall of a cave where we stayed for several days waiting for the old man to regain his strength. I’m sure it will be enough to build a merchant house.”
“Roland, what you have on this desk is more than enough to build a merchant house. What do you want me to do with all of it?”
“I want you to build a merchant house. I still want to be the silent partner, keep my name out of it. Let me stay at the house when I’m not out adventuring.”
Hazel’s eyes watered. “Roland, you have given me so much. One day I was a child beggar, the next you rescued me, sent me to school, and now you’re providing me with enough wealth to build a merchant house. How am I supposed to pay you back?”
“Take care of me financially. You know how bad my charisma is. Let me know on occasion how we are doing. If you ever need my assistance with anything, let me know. You have been taking care of me too, Hazel. If it weren’t for you, I would still be living in that overpriced house near the gate and putting all the gold I earn into the bank, only receiving a small amount of interest. You have grown the money I’ve given you faster than any bank will ever be able to. I like what we have going here.”
Caged: Book 2 Of the King's Hand Series Page 25
