Chapter 100: Chapter 99 – Disaster Report

It was true, finding the stone smiths was extremely difficult. Many of the houses that served as storefronts had been packed up and hidden away from plain sight. The Kingdom was one of the main buyers of luxury statues and other stonework, but the war had put a freeze to all of that. Now they were out of pocket and out of customers. It was nothing a few pointed questions couldn’t fix – and I eventually found someone who knew where one of them used to be.

We trudged our way over there and knocked. Thankfully the smith was willing to answer my questions – as the dragon had started causing serious problems in the supply of materials from Noel’s Chapel. They were hoping that I’d go up there and sort it out. In the end, all they could say was that the drake was real as they'd heard about it first-hand from a friend.

As we headed back to our lodgings to plan the next move - Cali spoke up, “Do you know aught of the drakes, Ren?”

“Not really.”

“Most people simply treat them as a natural disaster. You can count on one hand the number of fighters on this continent capable of piercing their hide. They’re large and wicked beasts. The continued existence of society can be attributed to their inability to breed quickly. Them encroaching on human territory is rare, they don’t like the noise.”

“Anything else?”

“Despite their reptilian appearance, drakes have extremely high body temperatures. If they were to travel any further south than Noel’s Chapel and the Cerwail Mountains, it is speculated that they would die from the heat.”

 “There’s an idea. Put a collar on it and drag it down here.”

Cali tilted her head, “Not only would acquiring a collar that large be difficult, but the drake also has incredible strength and stamina and…” she paused. Her eyes narrowed, “That was a joke, wasn’t it?”

“Yes. Well done for noticing.”

Cali steamed, “I could say that for half of the words you speak to me.”

Whether Cali thought it was funny or not – I was pleased to see that she had started to understand sarcasm and double meanings. She always took everything I said literally, and was incapable of reading people’s tone of voice.

We squeezed up the narrow stairway of the boarding house and unlocked the door to our present lodgings. The room I had rented was a cut above my usual picks. There was actual furniture, a small hob to warm the place, and beds with a full complement of covers and sheets. Tahar and Cali went to sit by the fire and get it going. If they thought it was cold here in Dalston, they’d have a hell of a time up north.

I had other things to worry about. I pulled up my stats and studied them in detail.

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