Ellake - Gifted - Chapter 124

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Sitting on my desk, legs crossed and looking out over the bay of Helenica, allowed me to clear my mind enough to start mapping out what to do with my Paths. Our trip from Drevorn to Helenica had taken three weeks. The first few days had been a complete waste in terms of working on anything. Between recovering from a concussion, the pain of my various injuries, and my terrible sleep, there had been nothing to do but try and listen to my aunt’s rambling. I thought myself a reasonably intelligent kid, but in that state, I am certain my aunt had repeated herself more than once. After recovering enough to actually participate in the studies, I had been forced to leave certain Paths alone.

Shieldwork and Axes both required me to be mobile, which with my injuries, was not going to happen. Axes was almost to the eighth tier, and I had been unwilling to make it dormant and lose all that progress. I had been tempted to do so for Shieldwork, but a discussion with Blake, Nazim, and Aunt Agnes convinced me not to lose the four-hundred or so steps of progress since we were definitely going to get me the Path of Weapon Mastery before I started at the Academy.

In the end, the only Path I did move was Ambushing. Losing the twenty or so steps was annoying, but I’d had almost three weeks of nightly writing as I answered my aunt’s barrage of questions on the politics and players of Meravia.

Opening my Status, I looked over the changes.

The Path of Writing - Helenian had flown up given how experienced I already was with the discipline and aided by my Gifted attribute. In the weeks on the road, it had already reached the sixth tier and that was only practising for a few hours a day. The six extra mental Stats had been nice as well. At the rate I was going, I could potentially finish the Path before I started at the Academy. 

The problem I needed to solve was everything else. Soulstealing, Exceptionalism, and Completionist locked me out of three Path slots which was slowing me down. On the other hand, they were also the Paths with the best rewards. Soulstealing seemed to only work on demons who were possessing people, and while I didn’t plan to go looking for more demons, I did seem to have an annoying habit of finding them. We were like moths drawn to each other's flames and whenever we encountered each other, I ended up snuffing out their candle to feed my own.

Maybe making the Path dormant would be the smart thing to do, but losing thirty-one steps on a Path that had improved my Aether Core and Channels felt like killing the golden goose. I would leave it alone, for now.

Completionist and Exceptionalism were amazing in their own ways, but the main reason I refused to let either go was the thought of finishing both before unlocking my Basic Class Path. That day was just over two years away, and while it felt like I might struggle to reach my goal, I refused to back down from the challenge.

That left my two Shadow Aether Paths, my two pure Aether Paths, and my two weapon Paths on the chopping block. My assumption assumed that Aunt Agnes would expect me to work on my reading and writing, plus I knew which Paths she wanted me to give up on for now.

Shadow Magic and Obscuring Shadow were gaining steps at a rapid rate, my Potent Shadow Affinity once more coming to my aid. However, Aunt Agnes had no use for my Shadow Affinity. If anything, it was one of the few blemishes on my person in her eyes. She hadn’t said as much, which I took to mean she was being careful not to annoy me, but I could tell that she had no intention of aiding me with the Path until after I started at the Academy.

What would I do in her situation? I wondered. Grandaunt Agnes is a skilled negotiator. If she wants me to drop my Shadow Paths, she’ll offer me something she thinks I want in exchange. The only answer is Life Magic Paths. Probably only one though since she’ll want me working on something like Etiquette or Small Talk.

I could ignore her, of course. Maybe even lie about doing so, though that seemed unwise since she was going to be paying for my tuition to attend Songleaf. The alternative was to get my Shadow Paths to the next tier and then make them dormant. I could manage that for Shadow Magic, but Obscuring Shadow gained steps more slowly because it was an Advanced Path. My chances of managing that in the next month or so were absolutely zero.

I supposed I could move Aether Control out for a little while to make room for whatever Path my Aunt wanted. Unfortunately, it gained steps even more slowly than Obscuring Shadow, and I once more lamented my lacking Aether Core. With more aether, I could practise more, plus gain steps more easily in aether Paths. Taking a deep breath, I let my annoyance wash away. Many would kill for my advantages, and I would solve my aether problem in time.

With all the pieces laid out, a loose plan began to take shape. I would be moving Paths around as though solving a logic puzzle for the next couple of months. In the end though, I should be able to manage to make my aunt happy while also furthering my own plans. Dismissing my Status, I carefully climbed off the desk and hobbled over to the door to my room in Aunt Agnes’s manor.

Following Petyr’s instructions, I reached up to touch the bell hanging by the door and pushed a small amount of aether into it. I felt a gentle buzz in response, but no sound emitted from the bell. A small frown was creasing my brow when I heard quiet footsteps in the hall outside. The noise of what I guessed were slippered feet stopped outside my room and then there was a polite knock.

I waited for a second, expecting the door to open but when nothing happened I called out.

“Come in?”

My reply sounded more like a question, but it worked nonetheless as the door swung open to reveal one of the young maids. Her hair was hidden beneath a light-blue bonnet and like Petyr, she wore a uniform in black with light-blue highlights, her dress hanging down to her ankles that revealed black stockings beneath sturdy black slippers. I didn’t know much about clothes, but it looked to me like Aunt Agnes didn’t skimp on the uniforms for her servants.

Is that even the right term for them? I wondered. Should it be employees? Do I just call them by their jobs? Maid? No, Bastian you moron that sounds rude as hell.

“Was there something you wished for, young master?” asked the maid after a short but uncomfortable silence while I tried to figure out what to say.

I opened my mouth then shut it quickly before I could say ‘umm’.

“I was hoping for a bath,” I replied after giving myself a second to think. “Do I just run it myself?”

“Only if you want to, young master. I can get it started for you or help you if you want. Mistress Hawthorn mentioned that you were injured on your travels and that you might require some assistance…”

I was already vehemently shaking my head. My desire to have someone present while I bathed was roughly on the same level as my desire to have a Giant Eyeless Spider land on my head a second time, concussion and all.

The maid paused at my denial and bobbed her head in acknowledgement. “I’ll get the bath running then. If you leave out the clothes you wish to wear, I will make sure they’ve been washed before you're finished. I’ll be in the bathroom once you’re ready.”

As she turned to go I blurted out a question. “What is your name?”

“Bethany, young master. But you can call me Beth if you like.”

“Okay,” I answered dumbly before closing the door.

The entire interaction had made me a little uncomfortable. In Hornpeak, I had been expected to handle most simple things like washing myself and getting dressed afterwards on my own. Even when Nazim or Gramps would help me train, they would let me struggle through on my own with naught but suggestions. It would be an adjustment on my part learning to have maids handle such things like preparing my baths or outfits.

Pulling some of my clothes out of my single travel bag, I ran fingers over the homespun wool. The threadwork was excellent, but the quality of the wool wasn’t anywhere near as good even just comparing it with Bethany’s uniform. A reminder of my life in Hornpeak and the woman who made these clothes for me.

Rest in peace in the Ocean of Souls, Grandma Lucille, I thought.

Setting the clothes down on the end of my bed, I hobbled out into the hall and over to the bathroom. Bethany stood beside a large metal tub as it filled with water from a tap that had been plumbed into the wall. I smiled while the maid explained how to use the bath, pointing out the various soaps and ointments along with towels that were set aside for drying.

“Are you sure you don’t need help getting in?” Bethany asked as she avoided looking at my braced ankle.

“I’ll manage.”

“Certainly, young master. I’ll have the clothes you left out cleaned. Did you want them brought to the bathroom or back to your room?”

“My room, please,” I replied, looking away before she could see me blushing.

After Bethany left, I looked at the door, lamenting the lack of a lock before awkwardly stripping off. Climbing into the bath was less challenging than expected with my enhanced strength, though I did feel a little tightness across my chest where my ribs continued to heal.

A small part of me whispered that I should just relax for a while and soak in the warm bathwater. I squashed the whisper like a bug and started scrubbing. Six months, that was all I had before I started at Songleaf. A loose plan for my Path progression was already in the back of my mind, but that was only one problem to solve. There remained two others. 

Aunt Agnes had made it clear that Nazim was in my employ and thank the heavens for that. I think if that had not been the case, she would have dismissed my friend from his duties as bodyguard. But, having Nazim in my employ meant that I would be the one paying him, and my weekly stipend of three aether coins only just covered those costs. One aether coin for Nazim’s wages, and a second to my aunt for his lodging and food left me with a single aether coin to my name per week.

Such riches were enough to do nothing of worth with, which meant I needed to solve the problem of my lacking wealth. My rewards from the Rift I had unintentionally been flung into were enough to do something, the question was, what?

Finally, my new Life Affinity offered an opportunity. Combining aether threads of Life and Shadow would let me cast spells of the Dream Affinity — something even the nobility was wary of. I had witnessed its usefulness when a single spell put Nazim to sleep. My read on Aunt Agnes told me she wouldn’t find me any sort of instruction in Dream Spells, so I would have to do it myself!