Duncaste CHP 12

Morning strikes on a dreary shitty day, and not a single speck of sunlight makes its way into the forest. MLML wakes up just as normal, around 12 pm, he looks around and sees goblee training. Goblee seems to be trying to get rid of his beer belly. MLML thinks this is a positive step in the right direction toward bettering his mind and body.

MLML gets up, rubs his sleepy eyes, and walks to the nearest tree. He unzips his trousers and starts to paint the nearest tree. MLML thinks to himself, nothing like a morning piss huh. After he finishes he tucks the acorn away and walks back over to camp.

"Hey Goblee, we are heading out in 5 minutes, your training seems to be going well!"

"Sounds good, I've been at it for 8 hours.

"Impressive keep working at it".

With that short conversation over they got all their stuff ready for the day's travel. They had gotten into the routine of traveling with one another thus far. It was simple with just the 2 of them.

They only had about half of their journey left at this point. MLML estimates that they would make it to the town of Duncaste by the end of the day. Duncaste is a town of about 5000 people, it sits on the edge of the infamous Rose lake. The lake is home to an abundant amount of food for the villagers. The issue is there are also various monsters that lurk in the deep. Villagers disappear often when they go near the shore or when they are out fishing in the small wooden craft. The people there are welcoming to travelers and outsiders. Being closer to the city they see a lot more people on the day compared to Greenflower. They make most of their coin exporting fish to the city and other local villages. Larger wooden boats manned by groups of people go to and from the docks daily trying to catch as many fish as possible. They then bring the fish in and process it. They gut the fish and begin the culinary process of slowly smoking the fish. Adding a good amount of salt to keep it preserved for the trip to the city. Another common export is magic-rich water. Rose lake has magic water that helps the surrounding fauna grow uncontrollably. It is studied by those in wizard colleges because it is an anomaly in the natural world. They don't know why its water is this way, it is just chock full of excess magic that has permeated into the water. It is also sold as a "power up" many people believe that it expands one's magic force with consistent drinking. 1 bottle of it goes for 1 gold, which equates to around $100 US dollars(for reference). This is so costly outside the town because of how difficult and expensive it is to outsource liquids. It is popular with the wealthier groups and some adventurers who can afford it.

The day goes smoothly for the dynamic duo. They come along several passersbys heading in the other direction. A small group of adventurers, a party of 4, from first look, it seems they have several fighters a wizard, and a holy person. People who have strong faith in this world have the ability to summon power from their God through the power of their faith. Abilities to cast attacks, heal and also defensive spells are possible. They usually also are skilled with weapons, and typically use blunted weapons. Primarily using staffs, hammers, or maces.

Another group passes by these are the elusive water sellers. MLML knows from his time at the library about this bunch. He also knows drinking water will not increase your magic force. The only way of doing so is by dedicating your life to training your forearms. They have a large wagon being pulled by massive horses, these stocky horses are bread primarily for hauling heavy cargo. They have barrels loaded onto the wagon, along with several people on watch. They have a heavy security detail because of the high price of the product they are traveling with. MLML waves as they pass and they return the favor, they cautiously pass each other and go about their days.

Eventually, they reach the town, they are welcomed by a small wooden fence that goes around the town as far as they can see in these dark woods. In the middle of their sight is a shabby gate guarded by a singular guard. Beyond the fence, there is an abundance of light compared to their day of travel. All the trees in the area of the town have been felled. Making space for light to dawn upon the entirety of the town. After the days of travel through the dark woods, only lit by gloshrooms and the flesh of the trees, it was a relief.

They had finally arrived at their first pitstop along their journey.