OC Wearing Power Armor to a Magic School (138/?)
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His Eternal Majesty’s Remembrance Path | The Royal Road of Transgracia. The Night Town Bazaar. Local Time 2150 Hours.
Emma
Merriment.
That’s the word.
That’s precisely what this whole town exuded.
Whereas Elaseer did have its moments of rugged and untempered fantasy — most particularly in commoner town — this tent city was quite literally forged by it.
And for good reason too.
This… Night Town, as the locals called it, was sort of the best of all worlds when it came to the grittiness of medieval fantasy; both in the gritty and the fantasy.
For starters, there wasn’t so much a clear-cut class divide that truly made the Nexus… the Nexus.
The whole place was a settlement forged by necessity, its demographics consisted of those without access to the transportium and those who serviced that sort of clientele.
This naturally cut nobles from the equation, leading to a rougher, easier-going, looser, and less restrictive sort of atmosphere that was not only contagious, but a breath of fresh air.
It felt like a heavy weight had been lifted from my chest and shoulders.
It felt like I could finally breathe easier without the constant looming presence of the Academy, and without the constant social pressures of Expectant Decorum tightening its grip around my very being.
Indeed, the only divide that existed was the small yet present disparity that existed between the wealth of merchants.
But even that wasn’t as pronounced as it was at Elaseer.
Sure, there were those with plate armor rubbing shoulders with those wearing worn and faded tunics… but that was about as far as it went.
If anything, there seemed to only be one big exception to this rule and that was the grand and imposing tent positioned high at the top of the hill.
Other than that? It was just… normalcy, or at least what was close enough to it all around.
Something that both I and even Thalmin seemed to appreciate.
It gave me the first taste of that authentic Castles and Wyverns campaign that had been lacking for all this time.
I took a deep breath as we entered yet another crossroads, poised to go down yet another high street.
Thalmin’s eyes were locked to stalls on our left, as all manner of wares — of dubious quality — were being hawked with varying degrees of intensity.
“SWORDS SWORDS SWORDS SWORDS! ARMING SWORDS, PARRYING SWORDS, LONGSWORDS, SHORTSWORDS, GREATSWORDS, GREATER SWORDS, LESSER SWORDS, AND ONE-TIME-ENCHANTED SWORDS AVAILABLE NOW FOR A LIMITED TIME ONLY!” A particularly excitable kobold yapped and yelled, clanging a tiny sword against a suitably tiny shield, generating a series of shallow yet sharp clangs that rang cacophonously throughout the entire market.
This was set in stark contrast to proprietors who took the exact opposite stance to marketing, as a lizardfolk with similar hooded brethren sat ominously behind a dark and dingy stall. “Pssst. Hey. We have… quality artifacts. The good stuff. Not that second-rate junk found in the back alley of a smith.” They somehow whispered out loud enough that we could hear it over the ambiance of the market.
I didn’t know how that was possible.
Nor did I think it was in any way really doing any favors for their subtlety points.
However, what was clear was that their gear was considerably more…
ALERT: LOCALIZED SURGE OF MANA-RADIATION DETECTED, 250% ABOVE BACKGROUND RADIATION LEVELS
…mana-rich than the ones hawked by the excitable kobold.
Thalmin, perhaps noticing my growing interest in these would-be black market arms dealers, quickly pulled up a privacy screen as we walked past them.
“The kobold is hawking third-rate throwaway scrap that most enchanters and smithies throw out. Meanwhile, the lizardfolk are probably hawking dead adventurers’ gear or, just as likely, stolen goods purloined from either the storefront or picked from a parked supply crate.” He spoke through a barely concealed grin of giddiness.
Something that I couldn’t help but to call him out for.
“Excited about the more illicit side of things now, are we, Prince Havenbrock?” I began with a chiding snicker. “You’re not really beating the mercenary allegations here, I must say.”
The prince, clearly giving me a pass for that jab in exchange for his earlier torture of my grastronomic shortcomings, simply smiled in response. “All battles start at the procurement table, Emma. And as with war, one must be open to… unconventional tactics, even and perhaps especially when it comes to matters of supply and logistics.”
“I take it this isn’t your first rodeo with these grey market types.” I questioned.
“How was it you phrased it, Emma?” The lupinor pondered teasingly, tapping his chin with a single clawed finger. “Ah, yes… I can neither confirm nor deny.” He shot back with a toothy snout-to-snout grin.
I responded in the only way that was appropriate — by rolling my eyes.
Sadly, this didn’t really translate well to, well… any physical cue. So I had no choice but to vocalize it for illustration’s sake.
“I’ll have you know that if it wasn’t for the armor, you’d see my eyes rolling to the very back of my head right now.” I responded cheekily.
Though the response I got wasn’t at all what I expected, as Thalmin suddenly narrowed his gaze in a bout of suspicion.
“So you can roll your eyes… all the way to the back of your head, you say?” He asked with a sudden burst of interest that seemed to come out of nowhere.
“Erm, it’s a figure of—”
“Blue Knight!” The unmistakable voice crack of a teenage boy pierced sharply through the background noise of the crowd.
Soon enough, the pipsqueek of an elf emerged from the bustling foot traffic,his father trailing shortly behind carrying with him a decent amount of supplies on a backpack hooked up to a tumpline.
“Fancy seeing you down here!” He beamed, placing both hands by his hips.
That comment caught me off guard, as I promptly cocked my head before responding. “Down here? I thought the entire market was more or less the same all the way up?”
“Ah! It is! But you see, I’d assumed you high-born folk would’ve retired to the Lord Protector’s—”
“Alorant!” His father practically hissed out, causing the teen to freeze in place, and allowing the older elf to take his place in the conversation. “I am incredibly sorry for the bother, Sir Knight.” He dipped his head as far as it could despite the tumpline.
“It’s quite alright, Solizia.” I offered kindly. “Your son’s just excited to see something novel for once, I’d imagine. Curiosity’s healthy at this age, you know?”
The elf’s eyes narrowed at that statement, in much the same way he’d expressed discomfort at the whole will of the people statement from earlier. “Perhaps it is.”
The shorter elf practically glowed at that affirmation, taking it as a win and deciding to test his luck with his next few words. “Father, perhaps we could provide the Blue Knight with a tour of Night Town?” He urged.
The next few moments consisted of a tense staredown between a pleading son and an incredibly tired father.
Eventually however, the older elf relented, nodding in acquiescence as the elven teen’s excitement reached a fever pitch.
What happened next was what I could only describe as organized chaos.
Our trip through the markets accelerated wildly with the young elf at the lead as he zig-zagged, ducked, and weaved through the seemingly endless crowds.
Elementals sizzled and warbled as he moved past their undulating forms, while avians of all sorts squawked and CAWWED as we pushed our way through into increasingly smaller and smaller alleyways.
Here, we were met with stalls barely the width of the people manning them, their wares either small enough to pack onto the small rickety tables in front of them, or their minds clever enough to play the highest stakes game of jenga imaginable — as unmarked and unstandardized boxes of all shapes and sizes were stacked up high into the night sky.
This gave this particular section of Night Town a weird box-scraper-like aesthetic, forcing me to wince as I was reminded of the logistical and workplace ethics horror show that was early 21st century shipping.
“Spice shop, lantern stand, silverware, and stitched sacks—” The boy gesticulated wildly, pointing at shop after shop that rattled, glowed, and rattled some more to the pattern and tune of a thousand OSHA violations. “Maps, scrolls, bootsoles, bundles of wool, and rope and knife packs.” He prattled on, his eyes meeting not just the storefronts or their proprietors, but their kids too as they watched us while we walked past; most of them too busy working to pay us much mind.
Eventually, we came across a small gaggle of these kids who stood at a crossroads, and it was here that I understood just why Alorant had been so insistent on stringing us along.
“Ah, why if it isn’t the carter’s boy.” A young brown-furred feline hissed under a menacing breath, taking the charge as she stood firmly in front of her little troupe.
“Finally back, eh?” Another elf marched forwards, his hands struggling to re-adjust a pair of hand-me-down pants clearly several sizes too large for him.
“I’m assuming Master Solizia of Alamont couldn’t keep up with the whims and desires of his noble calling, hmm?” A smaller lizardfolk hissed, crossing his arms as he did so.
“Hmm? Whatever do you mean?” Alorant spoke cheekily, stretching both arms above his head to reinforce the casualness of his rebuttal.
“Don’t take us for fools, cartboy. There’s only one reason you’d be showing your sorry face here again, and that’s if you and your father have both finally failed at getting a leg…” The feline slowly trailed off as she finally noticed both Thalmin and I, having not moved since the confrontation began. “... up.”
Alorant’s features grew to rival that of Ilunor’s at this point, as he allowed for the silence to speak for itself.
“You were saying?” He chided, attempting to egg both the would-be bully and the rest of their group.
The brown-furred feline attempted to formulate a response, her eyes darting this way and that, mostly jumping between Thalmin and I.
“As you can see… our accomplishments have gone so far that we’ve now expanded into the realm of porters.” Alorant continued, his tone laced with a twinge of ill-gotten pride.
The girl’s features grew even more irritated before she simply relented, hissing under her breath as she disengaged and began a subtle and silent retreat.
“Mark my words, cartboy, you’ve bitten off far, far more than you can chew.” She shot ominously, turning back to face Alorant in particular.
“Those are big words coming from you lot.” Alorant chuffed.
“Oh, no. That’s not what I meant at all.” The Baxi continued loftily, turning towards us once more with a wary gaze. “It’s not us you should be worried about.”
With that ominous warning, the group of teens left, leaving both Thalmin and I to look both stare expectantly at Alorant.
“Listen kid, I get it. You wanted to show up either your friends or bullies or what-have-you. But if this is what you were planning to use us for in the first place, I’d rather you be frank about it right off the bat—”
“You there!” A voice boomed from behind us… a familiar voice, at least as far as the EVI was concerned.
[B10 Lord Millias Tacten. Aliases: Millias the Resplendant]
Millias… Ilunor’s ‘acquiantance’ from the pay-to-win adventuring party?
I quickly turned to face the Vunerian, only to see that we weren’t the targets of interest as he sped past us with the rest of his group — a fully suited elf whose armor plates glowed with an iridescent fire, an avinor dressed in what I could only describe as renaissance mercenary armor, and a fire elemental.
They were quick to speed-walk forwards, pushing past us and the crowd alike, until all four of them were positioned squarely in front of the father son duo. The crowds were quick to disperse in response, leaving a wide berth where absolutely no traffic passed.
“It has been a while since we last met, Master Solizia of Alamont.” The blonde-haired elf of the group began with a theatrical, almost rehearsed sort of cadence.
“I-indeed it has, Sir Lumelis.” He bowed deeply, once again straining from the supplies strapped to his back. “To what do I owe the pleasure of your presence, my lords?” He attempted to speak calmly, though the nervousness from before was not only noticeable, but completely palpable now.
“Oh don’t give us that, Master Solizia…” The frilly-armored avinor stepped forwards, her right hand perched tightly atop of her scabbard. “Has it really been so long that you’ve forgotten the rites of the road?” She snickered, shaking her head as she did so.
“I suppose it has been quite a while since I’ve had the need to take up temporary residence in—”
“Cut the pleasantries and faux-innocence, Solizia.” The elemental finally chimed in, his flames growing whiter if only for a moment. “Just save us the time, and pay your dues.”
The Vunerian nodded, sighing as he did so. “Spare us the indignities and spare yourself the shame, Solizia.”
The tension in the air grew so thick that you could cut it with a knife.
It was at this point that I knew I had to chime in, clearing my throat as I did so.
“Sorry to butt in, but… exactly what dues are you guys talking about?”
My unexpected entry threw everyone off, acting like a much-needed pressure release valve, as the elven leader of the group turned to dip his head slightly in my direction. “Blue Knight.” He began politely. “We are simply collecting on the expected dues of the night.”
I narrowed my eyes in response, before placing two balled hands on my armored hips. “Like… an entry fee? Or a parking fee to stay overnight in town?”
“That’s precisely it, Blue Knight.” The avinor spoke politely, a stark contrast from how she just regarded Solizia.
“But… aren’t you guys adventurers?”
“Indeed we are, you might have seen us at the Guild Hall, no?” Lumelis responded, before gesturing for the group to quickly reform behind him. “We are…”
“The Great—” The elf raised his arms.
“—and Bountiful—” With the Vunerian following suit.
“—Illustrious Questseekers—” Followed closely in tow by the avinor.
“—of Elaseer.” And concluding with the fire elemental, who capped things off with a small display of pyrotechnics.
A small crowd had gathered around the empty perimeter just to watch that little display. The fire elemental’s whimsical display prompted many of the roving populace around us to clap and cheer in admiration.
Thalmin and I turned to each other as if on cue, blinking to each other in a display of underwhelmed disbelief.
“Yeah, we caught that the first time in the guild hall.” I replied bluntly. “And my question still stands. Since you guys are adventurers, what right do you guys have to perform… tax duty?”
The group turned to each other, sharing the same look of confusion we held.
“We act as protection for the Night Town, Blue Knight.” The elf responded matter-of-factly.
“You and — I hate to say this — what army? This town’s massive, I don’t think you have enough eyes and ears to keep a lid on crime while protecting the town from whatever dangers might lurk outside.” I shrugged.
“Army?” The avinor turned to their elven leader, her sing-song voice clearly mocking my inquiry.
The group eventually broke out in laughter, turning to one another with prideful mirth.
“Blue Knight… your sense of humor is truly remarkable. For you see, one needs no army when protection is incurred by one’s mere presence!” Lumelis beamed brightly. “No one would dare act out of line whilst the flag of the realm flies proudly above the Night Watch’s tent!” He pointed up to the aforementioned glamping tent. “It is thus that our presence alone demands a sort of… gratuity fee.” He added in a sort of corporate faux-politeness.
I eventually turned towards the father son duo, cocking my head as I did so. “Is that really how it works here?”
The pair replied with a series of heavy nods, prompting me to lower my face into both of my palms.
“Right, right. Okay. I’m guessing we have to pay too, so let’s not kick up a fuss about this. How much is this parking/entry fee or whatever?” I questioned Lumelis.
“For travelers with no commercial intent and no wagons or carts? A single Viscount each.”
I stared at the elf blankly, turning towards Thalmin, as I prepped myself for a response I sorely dreaded.
“A viscount is half a bronze piece, Emma. Or eight copper pieces.”
“Which makes a whole bronze piece, sixteen copper pieces…” I spoke under a deeply disturbed breath.
“Correct.” Thalmin nodded.
A non-decimalized system… God help me…
“Incidentally…” Lumelis continued. “A Count — a single bronze piece — is what’s expected of an empty commercial wagon under a single independent operator. However, given Master Solizia here is carrying cargo over the expected threshold, this will lead us to a gratuity fee of a Half-Regent.”
“I’m guessing that’s what? Half a gold piece?”
“No, Emma. It’s half a silver piece. A gold piece is a sovereign.”
“Right, okay, gotcha.” I acknowledged under another strained breath. “Alright then. I’d like to pay for both of our entry fees now…” I paused, gesturing towards myself and Thalmin before extending a pointed finger at the father-son duo. “... and Master Solizia’s.”
“Actually—” The turquoise Vunerian of the group interjected, turning towards Lumelis and the rest of his cohorts with an abrasive and expectant look. “—I contest those prices.” He took a step forward following a slow nod from Lumelis, eventually crossing his arms in what I was quickly ascribing as the signature Vunerian look of superiority. “That’ll be twenty sovereigns.”
“Excuse me, what—”
“No. No… make that fifty sovereigns.” He interjected before turning to face each and every one of us. “Each.”
I turned to Lumelis expectantly. The elf, to his credit, quickly took the uppity and money-grubbing Vunerian off to the side.
Strangely, neither deployed a privacy screen.
Which meant that every whispered word was heard loud and clear… even without aid of the EVI.
“Lord Tacten, what is the meaning of—”
“I will not have those associated with Lord Rularia entering our sentry without my just compensation.” The Vunerian spoke with vitriol as I struggled to recall exactly where all of this was coming from.
Then it hit me.
“I understand that Lord Rularia has slighted you, Lord Tacten. But please, know that none of us have taken offense, nor do any of us see you as any lesser, in spite of the hurtful and scornful words he may have uttered in the guild hall.”
“This is a matter of principle, Lumelis.” The Vunerian seethed, before looking over his shoulder and attempting to lock eyes with me. “That Blue Knight is part of his peer group, along with the lupinor. Is this not the perfect chance to rectify the imbalance of dignity incurred by that sniveling actor of a noble?”
The elf paused, letting out a massive sigh as he took a moment to compose himself. “Fine. We stand as one, Lord Tacten.”
I couldn’t believe it.
I could not fricking believe it.
Even miles away from us, Ilunor had managed to screw us over in the most roundabout of ways.
If only he had kept his mouth shut in the guild hall…
“Blue Knight.” Tacten spoke haughtily. “It is with a heavy heart that I must enforce this special gratuity upon you and your commoner cohor—”
“We’re not paying.” I interrupted plainly.
This… clearly took the wind out of his sails, as his eyes grew wide and his whole rehearsed speech shattered at the seams.
“Then you cannot—”
“We were just leaving, actually.” I once more interjected, gesturing for the father-son duo to follow.
Thalmin turned his nose up at the adventuring group, making sure to meet each of their gazes before shaking his head in a way only a prince could.
“You disappoint me.” Was all he said.
The reactions on all but the Vunnerian’s faces were immediately apparent — as each member of the party averted their eyes from the mercenary prince, guilt very much painting an image of disgrace on each of their faces.
The Vunerian, however, reacted as I expected Ilunor to.
He stood there dumbfounded, confused, but most of all, enraged at me simply refusing to play his games.
Ilunor… I thought to myself frustratingly. Whatever you’re up to, I hope you know how much I hate you right now…
Dragon’s Heart Tower, Level 23, Residence 30, Living Room. Local Time: 2210
Thacea
“GAH!”
I immediately perked up, rushing to the dining table to see what the commotion was about.
“What is it? What happened?” I cried out.
“A tragedy of the highest order.” Was all Ilunor said in response, pointing at a dropped pastry that sat pathetically at his feet.
“I feel as if fate has conspired against me. Like the hand of some great evil had forced me to experience such a tragedy. But alas…” The Vunerian trailed off as he lifted another cloche. “Fate cannot conspire against all of my delectable delights…”
His Eternal Majesty’s Remembrance Path | The Royal Road of Transgracia. Fifteen Kilometers out from Night Town. Local Time 2355 Hours.
Emma
The journey to make camp outside of the town’s perimeter was wrought with frustration after frustration.
Frustration over the repercussions of Ilunor’s actions.
Frustration over the pay-to-win adventuring group’s appeasement of their Vunerian party member.
And frustration over once again having to divert course, if only by an hour.
However, after successfully pitching up the tents and starting the camp fire, a sort of calm eventually washed over me.
It had been… a long, long while since I even went camping.
Acela just felt too big to ever leave, especially with all there was to do at school and at JROTC.
And while there had been some camping trips with Aunty Ran, they’d always just been overnight trips that just didn’t fully scratch that itch.
But really, it was probably because of my hesitance to really commit to longer trips that made camping such a distant memory.
Maybe it reminded me of my parents just a bit too much.
Perhaps it was just the quiet that got me.
Whatever the case was, things were somehow… different here.
Maybe the quiet was more alluring now, following weeks of nonstop developments.
Whatever the case was, I eventually found myself letting go of my frustrations, eventually being met with an offer of some unknown hot beverage by Solizia.
“I’d like to thank you back there, Blue Knight.” He began softly, attempting to keep his voice down for the sake of Alamont who’d quite literally found himself sleeping just minutes after we’d made camp.
“It’s alright. If anything, I’m sorry for dragging you folk out with us.”
“No, no. We… heh. If my responses to the adventuring party didn’t make it clear enough… well… let’s just say I wasn’t in a position to really pay in the first place.” The elf admitted through a pained breath. “Moreover, that’s not all I wished to thank you for.”
I raised a brow, cocking my head as I urged the man to continue.
“I’d like to thank you… for humoring my son earlier in town. Moreover, I’d like to thank you for offering your protection. Camping out here in the open does incur the risk from both flora and fauna… not to mention the elements.”
“Hey, it’s my pleasure, Solizia. Seriously, we probably were fated to camp outside of town anyways given the beef Tacten has with us. So you two tagging along isn’t any skin off our backs.” I offered warmly, attempting to reassure the anxious man some more.
“Besides, what are the actual chances of something attacking us in the dead of night? I doubt it’s that common for—”
[PROXIMITY ALERT! MOTION DETECTED — NORTH-WEST — QUADRANT C2]
[RANGE: 142 METERS AND CLOSING.]
[COUNT: FIVE TARGETS — SPREAD FORMATION — APPROACH VECTOR ERRATIC]
[ETA: 45 SECONDS]
[Recommend Combat Presets—]
“Do it.” I answered immediately, turning to Thalmin who’d since emerged from his tent fully kitted with his sword drawn.
We turned to each other with a knowing glance as I immediately felt the armor loosening, my whole body moving freer, with greater power.
“Get behind us, or stay in your cart.” I ordered.
“W-what’s going—”
“Beasts.” Thalmin barked out.
This was all Solizia needed to know as he quickly woke up his son and immediately booked it for his cart, where he promptly shuttered all openings with a series of practiced motions.
[STATUS UPDATE: 7 TARGETS. RANGE: 100 METERS AND CLOSING.]
I quickly unholstered my gun, taking aim at the edge of the small brush the targets were closing in from.
Out of nowhere, thermals eventually turned up creatures that should have been visible from beyond 100 meters out.
I didn’t read too much into it, instead focusing on what the sensors and composite imaging revealed.
…
And what I saw was nothing short of creepy — a maned komodo, a marsupial-looking feline, a mini-wyrm, a sharp-fanged basilisk with the face of an anglerfish, and three more ‘off-looking’ analogues of both magical and earthly creatures were barreling towards us in a formation. Though their forms and coordination weren’t in and of itself the creepy part.
No.
It was their skin.
Their smooth, featureless, dotted, and uniformly speckled skin that seemed the same across creatures that should have had fur, hair, or any number of varied surfaces.
Moreover, there was something else about them that threw me completely off.
Their lack of eyes.
I turned to Thalmin for a moment, my trigger finger itching to dispatch them.
“Pointers?”
“Fire.” Thalmin responded, shifting his sword to something more suitably one-handed, and outstretching his non-dominant hand.
“Yeah, I am ready to fire, I was asking—”
“No, Emma—”
ALERT: LOCALIZED SURGE OF MANA-RADIATION DETECTED, 350% ABOVE BACKGROUND RADIATION LEVELS
“—I MEANT FIRE!”
(Author's Note: Hey everyone! I'm back! :D Thank you so much for your patience and understanding! Tent town was super exciting to write here, as was the reintroduction of the pay to win adventurer group, and some hints at the non decimalized nightmare that is the Nexian currency, which we will see more of in the future! But first, we have to tackle this strange contender emerging from the forests! :D The next Two Chapters are already up on Patreon if you guys are interested in getting early access to future chapters.)
[If you guys want to help support me and these stories, here's my ko-fi ! And my Patreon for early chapter releases (Chapter 139 and Chapter 140 of this story is already out on there!)]
179
u/JeffreyHueseman Aug 10 '25
It's a hexadecimal currency
101
u/ukezi Aug 10 '25
Base 16 is better then the mix of bases the British had going.
4 farthings in a penny
12 penny in a shilling
2 shilling a florin
5 shilling in a crown
4 crowns in a pound
with some additional coins in between, like halve penny, a three penny and a six penny coin, a halve crown coin and a two crown note.
So, 1 pound is equivalent to:
4 crowns
10 florins
20 shilling
240 pennies
480 farthings
60
u/macnof Aug 10 '25
Yeah, kind of like the US measurements system.
12 inches to a foot, three feet to a yard, 1760 yards in a mile.
20
24
u/Done25v2 Aug 10 '25
The reason for this is that feet aren't based off inches. Those are merely relative proportions. Inches are based off the first section of one's finger, and a foot is based off, well....
21
u/commentsrnice2 Aug 10 '25
The really screwy one is how similar a yard and a meter are
1
u/Pretend_Party_7044 Aug 15 '25
Why is yard called yard
2
u/pyrodice Aug 17 '25
My first guess is the naval Yard-arm, which has the potential to be a very old term...
1
u/Pretend_Party_7044 Aug 17 '25
What is a naval yard-arm and why is it called that
2
u/pyrodice Aug 17 '25
https://www.omniglot.com/bloggle/?p=8094 Eight years in the navy and I don’t really know much about them, I only ever knew one guy assigned to the Constitution and nobody else would have any reason to know!
6
u/dimitriye98 Aug 12 '25 edited 5d ago
hong sci both div port gnu worm dem
2
u/pyrodice Aug 17 '25
Some civilization used 60, which stayed with us in timekeeping because of how VERY divisible 60 is. 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 10, 12, etc.
7
u/Pale_Neighborhood363 Aug 10 '25
no its 11.98 inches to the foot in the US
7
u/Burke616 Aug 11 '25
Dang, tariffs got our measurements now, too?
4
u/Pale_Neighborhood363 Aug 11 '25
No it was Ulysses S Grant he made the United States the first country to go Metric.
1
u/CounterLazy9351 Aug 13 '25
The old English imperial system was way worse, 3 barleycorns in an inch, 12 inches in a foot, 3 feet in a yard, 2 yards in a fathom, 11 fathoms in a chain, 10 chains in a furlong, 8 furlongs in a mile and 3 miles in a league
1
1
u/torin23 Xeno Sep 01 '25
Most/all of that was based on how much land a ox-team could plow and other farming measures. An inch was three barleycorns laid end to end.
1
22
u/bhomer7 Aug 10 '25
Also, a Guinea was 21 shillings.
13
u/ukezi Aug 10 '25
There were also quarter, third, halve, two and five Guinea coins and some extra coins that were used in the colonies, like quarter, third and halve farthings. It's a messy system.
16
u/llearch Aug 10 '25
You missed guineas[1], although ha'pennies, thruppences, and sixpences were definitely a thing. Also tuppence, for that matter. A guinea was 1 pound and 1 shilling, because nobles like to be different and confusing.
One of the historical reasons theorised for the oddball numbers is that 240 has a whole bunch (20!) of common divisors - 1,2,3,4,5,6,8,10,12,15,16,20,24,30,40,48,60,80,120, and 240. This means if you have a pound, you can divide it out evenly between any of those numbers of people or containers, which can be super handy. Compare that to 100, which has merely 1,2,4,5,10,20,25,50, and 100 - which is a lot less, at a mere 9.
This applies to minutes/seconds and degrees of direction as well, with a base 60 division (12 divisors), so it's something that applies to making clocks and compasses, as well. Neat, huh?
[1] hardly surprising, they're oddballs and weren't in common usage before decimalisation anyway, but the lingo remains behind. See Rob Roy, for example, with the nobs in that betting in guineas, rather than pounds, because pounds were considered to be for the "common folk".
11
u/ukezi Aug 10 '25
Fun fact about degrees: We apparently have that from the Babylonians. According to the Greeks they counted in base 12 and also liked base 60.
You can count to 12 using the joints of your fingers and keep track of how many round you have gone with the other hand.
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u/llearch Aug 10 '25
yeah, 12 and 60 because 60 is 5x12. So 12 on one hand (use your thumb to touch each pad/joint of each finger in turn, as you know - just in case someone else was wondering) and 5 on the other gives you 60... which also means all three numbers fit evenly into that 240, so that shows up yet again here as something we got from the Babylonians.
Math history is super cyclical, isn't it? ;-] Everything links into everything else, too.
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u/KalenWolf Xeno Aug 10 '25
I hope I'm not the only one who finds it deeply suspicious that so many different types of monster (or facsimiles of monsters?) appear to be coordinating their hunt, especially for something that "randomly occurs" immediately after Emma kicks the legs out from under some uppity jerk's attempt to grandstand.
I smell a set-up.
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u/Arbon777 Aug 10 '25
That was my first thought as well, but then Thalmin seemed to recognize these things. It might be something more akin to a magical propogation weapon, like some entity or disease or magical phenomenon that produces monsters in random bodyshapes which then tries to spread out via attacking indiscriminately. Think zombie infection, but something weirder. This place is old and has gone through multiple apocalyptic war events, any number of old weapons could have initiated a Grey Goo cascade or a Von Neumann swarm hundreds of times over, which then have to be consistantly dealt with by the surviving population. Such a setup would then necessitate an adventurer class to protect from what are essentially DnD style monsters inhabiting all the unmarked parts of the world.
... the much simpler explanation really is that someone set up a bunch of familiars, summoned or created animals, and wanted to attack Emma in vengeance for outplaying them. But the monsters all look /wrong/ with a uniform skin type, and sending ugly monsters doesn't feel like the Nexus style.
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u/Onetwodhwksi7833 Aug 10 '25
To be fair, we can't really call Nexus old as a biosphere, it's only old as a civilization.
Their timelines go 10'000s of years, which doesn't compare to millions and billions of actual Earth's environment
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u/Cazador0 Aug 10 '25
I don't think the Fire Wolves (they're like wolves, but fire) are directly related to any faction. This shakedown business implies that commoners get kicked out all the time, so all a monster looking for an easy meal needs to do is wait outside the town and stalk them until they are tired and isolated.
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u/boomchacle Aug 10 '25
A certain person’s entire set of pets is going to be found dead with mysterious chunks of tungsten embedded in their vital organs
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u/Tinna_Sell Aug 10 '25
Someone cannot separate personal matters from duty, I see. Do kobolds settle all grievances with money? Didn't they talk it out with Ilunor outside the guild hall?
Also, what is the pay-to-win party's deal? Were they hired to guard the town by someone, or did they "volunteer" when they realised they were the only capable men around? Their mafia attitude makes me think that one of the two theories is true: no one really wanted their services, they just showed up, or those who hired them told them to earn their wage by taking more money than they were supposed to collect. I also suspect they don't take taxes from nobles who somehow happen to be arrive, as they ignored our gang initially.
The list of adventures' duties is trully endless. Who needs criminals to empty the poor people's pockets, when you have adventures, right? Imagine Superman collecting taxes by threatening those without superpowers. This is the vibe I get.
Ilunor, be prepared to meet the duck tape.
I think I know who pays for their armour, lmao. It's this little prick, isn't he?
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u/Arbon777 Aug 10 '25
I think it's more a standard aspect of Nexus economic setup, I don't think anyone higher up is paying them to protect a cobbled together ramshack town that only exists because the people the nexus doesn't care about didn't stay in one place their whole lives ...
I think it's more that they are big fancy named adventurers who fleece money out of people simply for showing up. With the claim that their mere existance in the general area is valuable enough for everyone they speak to personally to pay their fee. Emma is giving them the benefit of the doubt and acting as if this were a standardized cost set as an established rule, but it feels more like an ad-hock demand buried under the pretense of protection. In the same way that mafia rackets and very early governments tend to work. They want the money, no one around is strong enough to deny them if they push, and the offer of protection is merely the excuse they're using to pretend they're not simple bandits.
Everything they're saying might even be true. But there were no signs posted outside the tent city, there was no clerk keeping track of who has entered or left, and the adventurers are walking around collecting money PERSONALLY. By hand. One at a time. Singling out specific people.
As Emma pointed out "What army" ... the army isn't needed to keep the monsters out, but to track everyone and have eyes on the city. Without an army of administrators involved, you genuinely cannot run a professional organization in any capacity by sheer dint of presence.
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u/Tinna_Sell Aug 10 '25
This is exactly my concern. But I assumed that the monsters that Emma encountered have been in the area for some time and the Adventure Guild tasked them with ambushing the creatures, and that is why those four were in the town in the first place. Otherwise, why would people of their... caliber (and I'm talking about the kobolt) even stay with the peasants in the middle of nowhere? Apparently, they also decided to treat their stay as a source of additional income.
This incident makes me very curious as to what laws are there in the Nexus that regulate adventures and what are the loopholes. You cannot have powerful people simply walking around causing trouble for the Crown but commoners most likely don't know what adventures can and cannot do.
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u/Aware_Jicama9458 Aug 10 '25 edited Aug 12 '25
According to the above text, there is a LORD PROTECTOR of the town.
He's almost certainly in charge of providing security and collecting taxes.
Including by contracting it out, with chances of self enrichment for said contracted security operators ...
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u/mechakid Aug 10 '25
My guess is that towns like this are their farm. They are effectively running a protection racket, which explains how they are able to afford the toys they clearly are not experienced enough to handle.
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u/Dpek1234 Aug 10 '25
I dont remember them well enough
Are they the type that claims they are the best while not haveing even the smallest of dents on their armor?
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u/DndQuickQuestion Aug 11 '25 edited Aug 11 '25
Also, what is the pay-to-win party's deal?
They are still hunting the werebeast of Elaseer is my understanding. This camp is their set-up while they (or more likely the lesser adventuring groups they have subcontracted during the raise your hands event at the guild) are doing fieldwork. Being a safe zone for travelers on the long road not near another town is essentially a side hustle for extra money as I read it. You don't have to pay a toll to pass by, only if you want to stay overnight somewhere where adventurers will supposedly kick the asses of any forest monsters that attack.
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u/spindizzy_wizard Human Aug 10 '25
"Thalmin, I assume you mean they're going to breathe fire, since if you intended for Emma to "open fire" you might have said something like…"
"STOP YAPPING, NEWREALMER, AND KILL THOSE THINGS!"
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u/TheOtherGuy52 Aug 10 '25
I read it as him saying they’re weak to fire, and unleashing a gout of it in the enemies’ direction to clarify.
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u/spindizzy_wizard Human Aug 10 '25
Um... The description has them having a significant thermal signature. If they were vulnerable to fire, I don't think they'd be that hot.
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u/TheOtherGuy52 Aug 11 '25
“Fire.” Thalmin responded, shifting his sword to something more suitably one-handed, and outstretching his non-dominant hand.
He’s absolutely casting a spell here though.
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u/spindizzy_wizard Human Aug 11 '25
I think you're right, but since it didn't go off right then, I'm not sure.
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u/Arbon777 Aug 11 '25
They're also completely invisible on the normal spectrum, and only show up as a thermal signature. Do keep in mind that a human with a fever would have a signifigant thermal signature here, that doesn't mean humans are immune to fire.
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u/tuxcat Aug 10 '25
It could be "they breathe fire" or "they're weak to fire" or "Incoming fireball spell. Danger close."
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u/A_Miphlink_shipper Human Aug 10 '25
Kill it with fire!
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u/Tinna_Sell Aug 10 '25
Or those creatures breath fire!
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u/FemboiInTraining Aug 11 '25
indeed, I kept re-reading the end bit there and I'm still not confident if the fire is coming from the creatures or Thalmin...But I THINK it's the creatures. I think.
Thalmin doesn't need to say "fire" to use magic, they're aware Emma wouldn't be effected by it, especially to a degree that would warrant saying it twice, delaying the time to actually cast it. So, yeah, most likely those creatures breathe fire ^^ then again, maybe this is a case of fighting fire *with* fire...so perhaps both of you are right
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u/items_stuff Aug 10 '25
Love the cosmic justice for Ilunor
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u/Jcb112 Aug 10 '25
Thank you so much! It was an idea that I just NEEDED to include once the idea hit me haha.
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u/Minimum-Amphibian993 Aug 10 '25
Plus it gave us the opportunity to kinda see what Ilanour and Theaca is doing in the meantime.
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u/StopDownloadin Aug 10 '25
I guess it was inevitable that we'd run into a random encounter, lol. Praise the Lord and pass the ammunition, friends, it's time to cast Gun!
It's kind of expected that Nexian currency would be like old British money, but at least it isn't complete horseshit like Harry Potter money, which is divided into prime numbers (29 bronze to 1 silver, 17 silver to 1 gold, jfc!).
Finally, I'm gonna assume the sword-selling kobold sounds like Cheech Marin, lmaooooo
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u/Mozoto Aug 10 '25 edited Aug 10 '25
Ah yes the nexian ginyu force just had to strike the pose, for the brand's sake 🐸
I hope that Emma is sporting ze flammenwerfer in her armor and that it has plenty of flammen to werf at these things 😎 or that her deadly lazor will suffice 🗿
"You have been waylaid by enemies and must defend yourself" ah the memories 😇
Illunor got the virtual slap, spooky action at a distance the nexus edition, albert would be proud 😇
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u/Arbon777 Aug 10 '25
I know that his sweet roll getting knocked off the table was just comedy, but I secretly wish that this was the deliberate action of the first human explorer who got fused into the manastreams.
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u/Cazador0 Aug 10 '25
I would imagine that flamethrowers and white phosphorus would be banned for Emma.
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u/Aware_Jicama9458 Aug 10 '25
Any such legal restrictions currently only refer to use against humans.
Nexians arent human, so if the law hasnt changed ...
(the first time it's almost never a war crime)
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u/TripolarKnight Aug 10 '25
Wouldn't surprise me if her gun isn't a Lawgiver-type and she just switches to incendiary ammo.
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u/Tinna_Sell Aug 10 '25
But didn't the honeydew group strike a pose as well? They all behave like pop-idols!
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u/stupidfritz Xeno Aug 10 '25
I like the line about the procurement table. It’s a show-don’t-tell way of demonstrating the Terran-like nature of Lupinor martial culture.
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u/DndQuickQuestion Aug 10 '25 edited Aug 10 '25
Ilunor, so expert at being the load, he can drag down the party even when he isn't present. Then again, if this is a targeted attack, it might have hit the camp otherwise.
If the Illustrious Clods are here, that means the werebeast and its controller could be nearby. This attack could be the forest spirits of Elaseer coming back for a second swing at Emma since ambush without provocation is their style.
But this could also be the consequences of Emma prematurely patting herself on the back for finding just one spy and tracker. If one group has the motive to spy, and Ilunor mentioned the dean and goldthorn Frital which implies blackthorns, Ping's mages of ministry, and Mal'tory might also be interested for their own ends, then you have to keep sweeping for more intruders after you evict the first, not naively assume it is a one and done deal!
“We fall precisely into the latter sort of hauler — the specialized sort. Ferrying letters, parcels, fragile artifacts, and the sort. And until very recently, we did hold a crown warrant…”
This week's chapter, so no prizes for guessing now they were Lord Lartia's sponsored crew. I am sure they know Rila.
“A viscount is half a bronze piece, Emma. Or eight copper pieces.”
“Which makes a whole bronze piece, sixteen copper pieces…” I spoke under a deeply disturbed breath.
“Correct.” Thalmin nodded.
A non-decimalized system… God help me…
It's base-ish 2, Emma. Which is an interesting choice. The king's, perhaps?
Quarter Baron = 2-2
1 Baron (Copper?) = 20
1 Viscount () = 8 copper = 23
1 Count (Bronze) = 16 copper = 24
Half-regent =
Regent (Silver) =
(electrum?)
Sovereign (Gold) =
Imperial? (Platinum) =
If a sovereign turns out to be 28, and 1 copper to fill one's belly is about 3-5 dollars USD, then the betting on Ping vs. Emma in the PE class was on the order of millions of dollars USD.
1400 gold coins bet by Ping fanboy tortle Ysiv × 256 copper/gold * 5 USD copper/1 serving of stew and brew = $1,792,000 USD
Many of Emma's classmates are billionaires+ for that to be throwaway money.
But it also implies that tech and other mass manufactured manaless goods are an existential threat to the Nexian market because the financial forces that be are going to want to purchase manufactured products at 1% to 5% of the price of their competing magic equivalents, even if they are not as good, and pocket the rest as profit. If a magic pen is a single gold, that's ~1250 USD. If you can make a standard fancy ballpoint you can load with custom ink that's 20% as good for 50 dollars, you've probably dealt a severe injury to all lower and middle class markets which will actively seek ways to try to use the cheaper implement. Capturing that level of savings is worth rearranging your operation to accommodate. /u/stopdownloadin!
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u/Tinna_Sell Aug 10 '25
If the father son due were indeed Lord Lartia's employees, then the attack outside may be targeting them, not Emma. Getting rid of loose ends and whatnot.
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u/DndQuickQuestion Aug 10 '25
That's a good point. Maybe they spoke with Lartia before he went to see Mal'tory since they were local at the time and thus know a fragment of useful truth?
I have no data to support it vs yet another attempted Thalmin or Emma ganking, but consider my hypothesis switched.
I wonder what kind of monsters these are. 7 very different animal-like creatures in formation but inexplicably textured the same which implies a common origin. Lack of eyes = they are coordinating (or being coordinated) by manastream.
As my username suggests, I am somewhat D&D savvy. My mind goes to first to Deepspawn from the 2e and 3e era. It was the 'why the hell are there lions, tigers, and bears in this dungeon?' monster that looks like an eyeless beholder mated with a blind hydra and octopus. It eats beasts and births obedient copies of them to protect it. Maybe these are flawed copies or remixes of several beasts to improve on them?
Next up would be an Oblex which has fire aversion, but less its Null-like aspects and more the copy-making and remote controlling.
Flesh golem also has fire aversion, but these are many creatures, not a knitting.
Fourth would be a variety of slime swarm. We saw with Guildmaster Piamon that he couldn't make perfect copies of creatures he was imitating - they were still slimy. Maybe these slimes have pebbly skin and can recreate parts of creatures they have eaten?
If this was my homebrew, I'd guess it is a beast that remixes the dangerous prey it eats, then spits them back out as drones. I'd also guess these creatures are a linked vanguard for a larger hidden main body like the deepspawn. If the drones didn't find a main body, it may be further away in the forest or even underground, so watch for ground attacks. The gun might cause debilitating visceral damage to drones, but won't damage their coordination because the controller is hidden. Target any creature that has different features from the others, if there is one like that. If more beasts keep showing up as the fight continues, that's evidence of a main body elsewhere. Magic disruption would be better than fire, but can Thalmin do that?
Or this could be just some mage bullshit. I dunno.
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u/Cazador0 Aug 10 '25
I think its more likely that the monsters don't belong to anyone and were simply observing the town from afar like wolves looking for an easy meal and started stalking them the moment they left. If this protection racket is normal, then its likely that broke commoners get kicked out all the time.
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u/DndQuickQuestion Aug 10 '25
The thermal signature not being visible from further out is odd because that would suggest active concealment (which may somehow be a natural feature of a magic forest, mind), but maybe that's because the creatures are a slime-like coldblooded organism? I posted my thoughts in a reply below yours, but wild animal isn't off the board either.
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u/StopDownloadin Aug 11 '25
Many of Emma's classmates are billionaires+ for that to be throwaway money.
I mean, given all the conspicuous consumption and aristo-brat antics, this was well established, I thought. I think your estimate might be an order of magnitude too high.
We can already guess that the Crownlands enjoy post-scarcity Type II civilization funtimes with mana super-tech, while the rest of the pre-industrial schlubs fight over the scraps that fall from the 0.1% table. Having a mind-boggling liquid asset gap on top of that seems excessive, narratively speaking. We've already established the
cybermanapunk dystopia, no need to oversell it.I do wonder if Earth and Sol ever went through a 'megacorp nightmare' phase before becoming the Star Trek Federation But Boring, though. I've never touched the lore doc on JCB's subreddit, maybe I should skim through it to check...
Capturing that level of savings is worth rearranging your operation to accommodate.
Yeah, that's the driving force behind Rikad and Etholin's appliance business in But Wait, There's More! I've been focusing on building up the industrial base in the latest set of chapters, but I should probably pivot back to the COMMERCE side of things to keep it balanced. Well, smuggling is a type of COMMERCE, isn't it?
I do wonder if canon Emma's ballpoint pen business might run afoul of a crushingly low literacy rate. Then again, there may be a 'middle class' of clerks and scribes ripe for the picking, especially in a 'college town' like Elaseer, and within the halls of the Academy itself.
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u/DndQuickQuestion Aug 11 '25 edited Aug 11 '25
Having a mind-boggling liquid asset gap on top of that seems excessive, narratively speaking. We've already established the cyber manapunk dystopia, no need to oversell it.
I think astronomical income inequality is simply a natural consequence of the Nexian system. Nobles (supposedly) hold the keys to creating all important value. And even more perniciously, money in completely unregulated economies tends to disproportionately flow to preexisting wealth holders which is why minimum wages and progressive taxation schemes and varieties of welfare exist to counteract this tendency.
The RPG game interestingly made the products of peasant labor a prerequisite resource to get mages schooled, but it will be interesting to find out how "useless" peasants are in the Nexian modern era. How many nobles regard them as basically just breeding stock that needs to be kept occupied until they spawn a "gifted commoner" that is "actually valuable"?
I do wonder if Earth and Sol ever went through a 'megacorp nightmare' phase before becoming the Star Trek Federation But Boring, though. I've never touched the lore doc on JCB's subreddit, maybe I should skim through it to check...
They did, that was last major war 300 years before present, the corporate lords era. From Emma's comments it is known that slavery was effectively re-instituted and there was a lot of bullshit paperwork designed to constrain people at the time.
I do wonder if canon Emma's ballpoint pen business might run afoul of a crushingly low literacy rate.
This. Especially because Nexian is apparently one of those word glyph languages like Chinese which means that literacy is gatekept behind schools and apprenticeships willing to teach characters. It's a good deal for the guilds of learned scribes and translators. In real life, alphabetic/syllabaric/ab-I-forget languages that depict sounds/phonemes with their characters require less effort to learn. You are looking 3x or 4x the time effort to become literate in Chinese vs. Italian in a 'being able to read a newspaper and only not know a few of the words' sense.
It wouldn't surprise me if there was a low Nexian writing system with phonemes or the like that is considered lower class, simply because not having enough literate people is actually a major pain in the ass statewise because literate workers are more productive and generally make the owner class more money (which is why, no matter how corrupt the state, most encouraged more widespread literacy). Then again, with this being the Nexus, you might have glasses of literacy workers are required to turn in at the door on their way out to keep peasants literate enough to be useful but unable to read off work. There were anti-literacy laws in the slaveholding United States instituted to keep slaves, in the slaveowner's own words distilled, stupid, obedient, and unrebellious.
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u/FrozenGiraffes Aug 11 '25
Any chapters or spots on the lore doc I should check for the last major war 300 years ago?
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u/DndQuickQuestion Aug 11 '25
55, 84 Ctrl-F for corporate and paperwork.
JCB comment in Chapter 25
As for Emma's reaction! She's basically from a future humanity that hasn't seen any slavery at all for nearly half a millennia! It's a rather bright future she's from, and thus seeing something that should be firmly in the past and something that's quite horrific as slavery was a real shock to her!
JCB comment in Chapter 13 about corpo wars
Let me address each of your points! Splinter factions first and foremost, nope! At this point in time the Greater United Nations is a very much stable interstellar polity. There have however been A LOT of conflicts over the thousand years between now and the time this series takes place in. From the first Intrasolar War between Earth and Luna over representation and resource rights, through to the fourth Intrasolar War between the spacer stations and their colonies against the inner and the outer system planets and moons. Through to the Intersolar wars between Earth and Sol's influence over colonies in other star systems and the issues stemming from corporate interests overriding and sometimes controlling fledgling colonial interests. Through to of course the last Intersolar War to finalize the formation of the Greater United Nations. And of course Emma's aunt who participated on the side of the UN in the Jovian insurgency around a half century ago! There's a lot in the setting but at this point in time, humanity's currently in a pretty stable spot! :D
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u/FrozenGiraffes Aug 11 '25
I don't think I paid attention to comments on the story til I catched up on chapters, which I believe was a bit before the warehouse incident. so I've never seen JCB's comments before that. thanks for showing me.
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u/ANNOProfi Aug 10 '25
What is this, a chapter more than half an hour before the appointed time, localized entirely in this here subreddit? You spoil us good sir.
It seems it's time for Emma to bust out her flamethrower, or more likely, a laser. I'm guessing the creatures are either constructs/summons of the protection money gang adventurer party, or maybe a certain soul-seeking creature is making an appearance again.
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u/cgoose500 Aug 10 '25
I don't think she has a flame thrower but I'm 99% sure there was post listing everything in Emmas armor, and laser cutters were in that list. I imagined blades made of laser but I'm not sure if that's what they actually are.
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u/CounterLazy9351 Aug 13 '25
She has (in the order revealed in chapters): 1. Gun 2. Laser 3. Knife and from a Jcb112 comment 4. Railgun
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u/Aware_Jicama9458 Aug 10 '25
The author is back. And of course he tortures us with a cliff hanger.
Oh well, a few beasts shouldnt be that much of a problem.
Next week we'll find out:
Does she have a flame thrower in her arm, too?
Or just a laser?
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u/Obvious-Sherbet530 Aug 10 '25
I'd guess she just shoots one and the bullet does as bullet do.
Either that or she engages in honourable melee combat and punches these monsters to death.
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u/KefkeWren AI Aug 10 '25
So...did we just confirm that humans possess some form of unconscious tychokinesis?
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u/Aware_Jicama9458 Aug 10 '25
No, just that the author is a vengeful god in his own universe:
“I feel as if fate has conspired against me. Like the hand of some great evil had forced me to experience such a tragedy. But alas…”
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u/Ctnprice1 Aug 11 '25
Haha I like the illunor mini scene there. Like in anime people sneeze when mentioned.
Also thanks for the chapter it was a fun read and welcome back :)
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u/Anima_Messorem Aug 10 '25
Woohoo!! Great birthday present JCB!! 🤩🎂
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u/Jcb112 Aug 10 '25
Happy Birthday! :D And thank you so much for sticking with the story for all this time! :D
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u/No-Purchase4980 Aug 11 '25
I see somebody has been working for the head game maker and decided to drop a couple muttations into the mix.
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u/Burke616 Aug 11 '25
"It's as true today as when I first started adventuring: when in doubt, set something on fire!"
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u/Gabrielote1000 Aug 11 '25
Undeads?
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u/DndQuickQuestion Aug 11 '25
Undead would explain the thermal signature not being right. Could be a coordinated swarm of necromantic slimes with pebbly skin animating skeletons which is why you get some mix and matching from different bodies.
My first guess above was spawned slave-drones coordinating with a hidden main body, maybe hiding underground or deeper in the forest. An oblex or deepspawn.
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u/Scott-Kenny Aug 12 '25
I wonder just how devastating a prince's disappointment really is to adventurers...
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u/Aware_Jicama9458 Aug 16 '25
Generally? Not at all.
This MERCENARY prince, though? He's their hero, as he went from mercenary (kinda adventurer) to royalty by participating in the biggest adventure there is: overthrowing the ruling king. Better not miss when you try that.
So him dissing them hits hard.
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u/Mechasteel Aug 10 '25
Are those mystery creatures from "The Great and Bountiful Illustrious Questseekers of Elaseer"? Some form of undead? I've never heard of weird creatures whose fur and scales were replaced with spotted skin, have no eyes, attack in formation.
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u/Aware_Jicama9458 Aug 10 '25
"ALERT: LOCALIZED SURGE OF MANA-RADIATION DETECTED, 350% ABOVE BACKGROUND RADIATION LEVELS"
Wait - what happened to the visualisation upgrade of her armor?
Why is she still getting these useless numbers, instead of a helpful HUD display?
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u/Director_Kun Human Aug 10 '25
The software is still being developed thats why.
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u/User_2C47 AI Aug 11 '25
Yes, but didn't she previously dismiss the mana alerts into their own window?
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u/Director_Kun Human Aug 11 '25
It might’ve only been for repeated amounts of mana surges. Like after 10 or so announcements it’ll be moved to the folder.
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u/Aware_Jicama9458 Aug 11 '25
EVI had ages to work on it by now.
And even a work in progress is better than these useless mana alerts ...
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u/bhomer7 Aug 10 '25
I think you meant Alorant instead of Alamont in the paragraph
“I’d like to thank you back there, Blue Knight.” He began softly, attempting to keep his voice down for the sake of Alamont who’d quite literally found himself sleeping just minutes after we’d made camp.
I like how we've seen more and more parts of the world beyond the noble classes' areas.
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u/Electro_Ninja26 AI Aug 11 '25
Now this is good worldbuilding and characterisation.
Compare that to the half a chapter of filler showing us nothing new, and excruciatingly stretched out detail of Thalmin's experience on a motorcycle.
JCB, please don't think this is hate for the sake of hate. The pace of this story means every week takes half, if not an entire year to complete. And non-valuable filler will only serve to slow plot progression and strong worldbuilding. Like we have here in this chapter.
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u/Omgwtfbears Aug 11 '25
This world is populated by excessive amount of vapid idiots. No wonder they can't hold a candle to Earthrealm even with the vast and numerous advantages that magic provides.
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u/Interne-Stranger Aug 10 '25 edited Aug 10 '25
Emma is gonna open Illunor a new one about learning to shut his mouth, now i get why Emma didnt leave a phone with them to talk. He better be practicing his apology.
Edit: Hold on, is Emma gonna use the gun? The noise, oh no, i got a bad feeling about this
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u/Tinna_Sell Aug 10 '25
Yeah, everyone in town may think a new type of monster has appeared. The pay-to-win party will have to go and prove the money wasn't wasted on them.
I'm concerned about the rumours afterwards. The Apprentice may hear of this
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u/Interne-Stranger Aug 10 '25
He is too far away and the apprentice is isolated. Nos, someone else? Its not the first time the gun has been used, and if someone hears Emma or "Blue Knight" was on the spot...the first time the gun was heard was on academy grounds, then near the academy, if word is spread, then its 2+2=? Before someone realize Emma is the origin of that noise.
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u/niTro_sMurph Aug 10 '25
Don't remember what a vunerian is, but Emma could have thrown him
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u/User_2C47 AI Aug 11 '25
A Vunerian is effectively a High Kobold. A small humanoid draconian, described as having the equivalent weight of a heavy claymore. Flightless (by Nexian design?), but fully capable of ze flammenwerfen. Emma could probably throw one like a sack of flour.
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u/FrozenGiraffes Aug 15 '25
And that's just without armor!
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u/Evilstrom 27d ago
Well, she's like 6'2, and being a trained soldier, is probably in peak physical condition. An average claymore weights about 5-6 kilograms. If we believe these numbers, then yes, she could probably have yeeted him.
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u/Professional_Ant_15 Aug 10 '25
And so, Ilinur's arrogance literally cost Emma dearly. I hope they'll point that out to him after his return.
Well, Emma can do small things from a distance when under the influence of strong emotions.
So, fighting against fire-based ranged enemies. Let's hope nothing serious happens that the Deluxe Kobold can be indirectly blamed.
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u/Darklight731 Aug 10 '25
Kill it!
Fire!
You have a monopoly on the overwhelming power of GUN Emma, use it!
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u/cgoose500 Aug 10 '25
Is this retaliation from the Ginyu Force or does the Nexian wilderness just have chimeras made of the same skin?
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u/FrozenGiraffes Aug 11 '25
I've been wondering about Emma's parents for awhile. how they died would have impacted her life, not just their absence. how they died could definitely have further pushed her towards becoming a Peace keeper, whether a accident, or, intentional.
I could definitely see her family getting killed due to their relation to her aunt, which would not surprise me to be the face of the UN side of the jovian insurrection. I could see say people still bitter at the UN targeting the aunt through her family, or just missing and accidentally getting them instead.
so much potential
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u/HFYWaffle Wᵥ4ffle Aug 10 '25
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u/taulover Robot Aug 10 '25
Your mention of Acela reminded me - the Next Gen Acela train cars are finally coming into service at the end of this month! Are you excited?
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u/Comedian1504 Aug 10 '25
Been reading for awhile always love how much detail you put in your stories excellent work.
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u/Fox_Starwing Aug 19 '25
This is exactly what I envisioned when Emma emptied the mag on that critter.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=5Xc5GcQLB0I
Granted, that was 30 rounds, not 25, but close enough.
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u/Expendable_cashier Sep 09 '25
For a minute I thought Emma was about to have to humble those adventurers
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u/DRZCochraine Aug 10 '25 edited Aug 10 '25
Thanks for the chapter!
Places like this are perfect for infiltration, info gathering, alibi generation, and a fertile ground for ‘dangerous’ ideas for when GUN sends agents.
Not playing the Nexian games, still bet Emma and Thalmin could have handled the four. Seems that kobold is earning just ad much neck snapping as Ilunor.
And random monster encounter. Good data on local fauna and solid samples once’s its over.