Amid the low din of clinking mugs and boastful stories, Felicity caught the eye of a passing server with a quick gesture. "Two foxhollow ambers."
Then she looked back at Caleb expectantly. "So who did such a poor job of raising such a fine young man? The last few minutes notwithstanding."
Caleb winced and gathered his reeling thoughts. "Meriel and Rufan Caldorn."
"Ahhhh." She nodded understandingly.
When the drinks arrived, she raised hers. "To your first step, Thal. And one you should have had help with."
He lifted his mug with a small nod of thanks. The bitter taste burned away the last wisps of that dangerous calm.
"You said red or blue," Caleb opened. "What does that mean?"
"Every person has seven primary attributes divided into two triads, plus Vitality. The body triad, or the Red Path, contains the attributes of Strength, Agility, and Endurance. Physical power, speed, and toughness. The mind triad, the Blue Path, develops Intelligence, Willpower, and Wisdom. Mental processing, force of Intent, and magical capacity."
She drummed her fingers once against the table as she paused for a sip. "Most people around here pick one path and stick to it. Warriors go red, mages go blue - that kind of thing. It's simple and effective, and more importantly… it's actually affordable."
"But there's a third option?"
"The Harmonic Path. Purple. That's what it's called when you develop the body and mind equally. It's what nobles and the wealthy typically do, at least as long as they can sustain it. They have the resources to buy mountains of stones. For someone like you?" She shook her head slowly. "It's a fool's game. You'd waste your whole life grinding for stones."
Caleb processed the information through a familiar filter, realizing it was similar to choosing a college major. The Red Path was the practical trade school. The Blue Path was the liberal arts degree that might pay off someday. And the Harmonic Path was the double-major in philosophy and theoretical physics. An option only available to people whose parents could fund their ten-year journey of 'finding themselves.' Even cosmic advancement, it seemed, suffered from class disparity.
Caleb rubbed his temples, already considering the angles. "So… people tend to specialize. But one stone doesn't lock you in, right? How does advancement actually work?"
"Smart question, and no, you aren't locked in until you break through. Here's what your parents should have told you: to advance to the next tier, you need to meet what's called the breakthrough threshold. You can't build a strong house on one pillar, right? Same principle. To go from F-tier to E-tier, you need to get all three attributes in your chosen triad up to the threshold, plus your Vitality - Vitality is required for any path. Try to force a breakthrough with unbalanced attributes?" She snapped her fingers. "You can break. Sometimes permanently."
Caleb leaned forward and interlaced his fingers on the table. "Okay. What's the cost? How many stones does it take to actually hit that threshold?"
"This one stone you're about to buy? It's a start. But to get a whole triad ready for breakthrough from F to E... you're looking at a pile of stones almost eighty times bigger. Adventurers grind for years, taking contract after contract and risking their lives for every stone."
The number immediately felt overwhelming. Eighty stones? But the words quickly became a fixed target for his ambition. His need to get stronger to survive. These stones were just an asset, a resource requirement. Caleb had managed projects before, dealt with budgets and timelines. This was just another type of project.
Only one where failure could mean death. Yeah, no pressure Foster.
"So how do people do it, Felicity? It took me a month and a half to earn one stone in the kitchen… there has to be a better way. A faster way."
She smiled at him gently. "They work hard, Thal. They do hard, dangerous work for the Guild. There's no way faster for someone not born to riches." She held up one fist. "For someone just starting out, there are four main avenues to earn coin and stones here."
"First, you slay bounties." She extended her index finger. "The Guild posts kill-requests on spirit beasts that get too aggressive or disrupt things close to the village. Hemlock prowlers and the like. But you have to be smart about it. Most beasts hunker down during the heat of highsun, when Aurum and Cinder are both in the sky. Your best windows are first dawn and second dusk. You kill the target, you bring back proof, and you get paid. Simple. Dangerous, but simple. And it can be quite lucrative. There are decent reagents to be butchered off of those creatures, on top of the kill contract. Things that you can sell to artisans and crafters, or back to the Guild."
She took a long pull on her ale before continuing on to her middle finger. "Which leads us to hunting. Local tradesmen and merchants need specific materials from certain beasts, and they'll pay well if you can deliver. It's different in that while you still might be killing something, this time it's specifically for what can be collected, as opposed to putting down a pest."
"Next, you can forage." She extended her ring finger. "The forest is full of spirit herbs and minor natural treasures. You learn to identify, harvest, and prepare them, and you sell the surplus. It's safer than hunting and gathering, but the pay is less reliable."
"Lastly," she extended her pinky finger, "you guide. We regularly get licensed delvers passing through for their turn at the dungeon that prefer not to tangle with the local garrison. They know how to fight monsters inside the shard, but they don't know the dungeon itself. A good guide can get them to the core without wasting their time, and they'll make it worth your while."
The phrase "licensed delvers" connected instantly to the scene from the day before. "Wait... these delvers. What's the difference between an adventurer and a delver?"
A wry smile tugged at Felicity's mouth. "The difference is everything." She tilted her head toward the far wall. "Come with me."
She led him from the relative quiet of their booth toward a massive wooden board that dominated one side of the hall. Parchments covered its surface, most of them crude charcoal sketches of monstrous creatures. It looked similar to the one out front of the building.
"This," she said, gesturing at a notice for a hemlock prowler offering a reward of a few silver, "is the life of an adventurer. Crudely put, we are the janitors. The dungeon leaks power into the forest, making the local animals bigger, meaner, and more magical. They become spirit beasts, and our job, young Thalorin, is to clean up the mess."
His eyes traveled to a different section of the board where a small, marked-off area had a sign: D-TIER CONTRACTS - GUILD SANCTIONED. Only one posting was pinned there. It was written in elegant, formal script on fine parchment.
Contract: Nurse Log Basilisk
Type: Culling
Tier: D (High)
Restriction: Veteran Adventurers or Licensed Delvers
Location: South of the Bryant farmstead
Objective: Slay the beast and return with its eyes
Pay: 500 gold
Posted by: The Adventurer's Guild
He blinked at the number, an amount of money that felt more theoretical than real. Some restriction text caught his attention next: Veteran Adventurers or Licensed Delvers only. He recalled the different animations on the badges he had noticed earlier: the simple wisps of mist versus the swirling fog on Felicity's own.
Crumb. Don't tell me even the janitors have their own hierarchy. It's going to be climbing the corporate ladder all over again…
He glanced at Felicity. "I notice the D-tier contract specifies 'Veteran Adventurers.' Is that an official rank? Or just a suggestion?"
Felicity followed his eyes to the contract, then back to his face. She let the corner of her mouth tick up in a small smirk. "You're an observant young man. That's a formal designation, a measure of proven competence that stands in contrast to the Dominion's birthright nonsense."
She tapped her own iron badge, the mist curling lazily around the spruce tree emblem. "The emblem and animation on a badge are unique to the branch that issues it. The purpose of the animation, however, is universal. It's a visual indicator of your prestige within a given tier, from a simple outline for an Initiate to a glowing background for the Honored. A Veteran is the second-highest rank. It signifies that the holder has completed high-risk contracts and is trusted by the Guild to handle serious threats."
Her gesture swept back to the listing. "But that's only the first half of the restriction. The second part, 'Licensed Delvers,' is where the real power lies."
"Delvers," Felicity continued, "are the ones with the key to the front door. They're licensed by the Dominion. Nobles, rich merchants, important legionaries... they're the only ones allowed inside the dungeon. They hunt for pure essence stones." She gestured at the restricted section. "A contract like this is just a side job for them, pocket change."
Caleb leaned back, the information starting to paint a clear picture in his mind. He saw the true power structure behind the social hierarchy of birth and wealth: a tiered organization of access, a resource-based caste system. Adventurers were the working class, grinding for scraps on the fringes. Delvers were the elite, with exclusive rights to the motherlode. The entire economy, the entire ruling order of this world, revolved around who was allowed through that door.
Felicity stared off in the distance, her voice softening. "Your father... Rufan... he used to take contracts like this. He was one of the best trackers in the Guild, before..." She trailed off, her eyes unfocused. "No one was better at hunting mosshide bears. He knew their patterns and their weaknesses. They said he could sense a change in the wind and know where one was denning. He was fearless."
She gave a slow shake of her head and looked back at him. "Before the incident with your mother, that is. Some say it was punishment for all the beasts he slew."
The words triggered a memory. The rock-solid warmth of a large hand on his shoulder. A deep voice, rumbling with pride. "That's my boy. Fearless." He felt the recollection of a child's adoration.
The monster in the shack had once been that man.
Felicity must have seen something on his face, because she gently said, "He wasn't always like that."
Caleb could only snort as he grabbed the conversational reins and led them back to their drinks in the booth. "So how do people learn to fight out there? It's not enough to just earn stones and gain attributes."
"Now you're getting somewhere, Thal. For martial skills, Guard Captain Hatch runs morning training sessions in the yard behind the barracks. They start at first dawn, open to anyone willing to get their face pushed into the dirt. It's a meat grinder, but it's free and it'll toughen you up fast." She paused for a second, eyeing him up and down. "But at your age you should know about that…" She stopped herself. "Well, none of my business."
Caleb forged ahead. "And magic?" He couldn't shake the image from his first day: a figure in the corner of the Hearthsong's common room, hand outstretched and drawing a glowing rune in the air.
Felicity gave him a knowing look, one that held a measure of sympathy. "Let me paint you a picture of the frontier... Most adventurers who work this far out are Red Path. They have to be. It's a tough, physical life, and being able to swing an axe harder or run faster is what keeps you alive when a prowler gets the drop on you. The few Blue Path adventurers you find out here are usually too weak or inexperienced to make a living in the cities."
She took a sip of her ale. "Anyone you've seen performing magic was almost certainly a licensed delver, and they're a different breed entirely. They don't live here permanently. Instead, they're visitors. They come in for their designated dungeon slot, get their essence stones, and leave. They have no time or interest in teaching a local youth the basics. Why would they? Their knowledge is part of their livelihood." She shook her head.
"So the professionals are transient, and the locals are underqualified. What about the Legion?"
"The Legion has mages, sure. Powerful ones. But they are an arm of the Dominion, and their methods are a state secret. Every legionary is oathsworn never to share their advanced martial forms or arcane techniques with outsiders. Trying to pry magic from a legionary is a good way to end up in a cell, or worse."
She sat back as she continued, "Which brings us to apprenticeships and the artisans in town. For someone like you, it's your best chance at picking up any of the mystic arts."
The answer still felt incomplete to Caleb. "So, no school or books?"
Felicity barked a laugh that turned heads at a nearby table. "A school? The closest Imperial Academy branch is in the provincial capital of Mirathra, and its tuition would make a noble blanch. You could try a Mage's Guild, but Deadfall is far too small and remote to warrant a chapter house. Besides, you'd have to travel to a major city just to apply."
Her amusement faded into a cynical smile. "And a book? Goodness Thal, a true grimoire, one that teaches you how to actually shape Mana instead of just listing theories is a treasure. It would cost more than half of this town. You can't buy them, Thal. You inherit them or you kill for them."
She let the weight of that statement sink in before continuing. "So, no, you won't be finding a library of arcane secrets. Out here, it's studying under the local craftsmen or nothing. We've got three options in town." She ticked off her fingers again. "Zarven's probably your best shot, but..." She grimaced in distaste. "He gives me the creeps. Something's off about him. Aurelian's an arrogant prick who thinks anyone not on his intellectual level is barely human, but his work is quality. I'm not aware of anyone who's managed to apprentice under him, though. Then there's Mistress Alia, the enchanter, but her waitlist is longer than my arm."
Caleb kept taking mental notes, while all the mention of magic left a distinct pull in his thoughts. [Savant of the Mind] latched onto the concept of apprenticeships and structured arcane learning. The urge to pursue it pulled at him like gravity. He felt a hunger for patterns he could not yet understand, but had to consciously shove the desire down. His job was his only lifeline, and he had no luxury for chasing esoteric knowledge when he still needed to eat. But he would definitely be pursuing magic eventually.
With his Soul Impartments, the Harmonic Path transformed from a costly risk into a clear opportunity. One stone didn't lock him in so he'd start practical and build a foundation, then expand when he had resources.
"Thank you." He swallowed past the tightness in his throat. "I mean it, Felicity. This briefing might have saved my life."
A faint blush rose on her cheeks. "Just... be careful out there, ok? This world eats unprepared kids for breakfast."
After finishing their drinks and the fried mushrooms, they returned to the counter. "I'll take a red spirit stone. For Agility, I think. It'll help with my blade work in the kitchen now, and when I eventually take up adventuring the speed could help keep me alive."
Felicity nodded appreciatively, accepting his pouch and tallying the coins quickly. "You've got just enough."
She reached under the counter and pulled out a plain red stone, rolling it through her fingers.
"One last thing, Thal. Swallowing this stone will unleash its power inside your body. Inside your very spirit. It will feel… chaotic, and overwhelming. That's the trial. You have to grab that power with your will and force it into the attribute you want. If you hesitate, if you let it just wash over you, then the best case scenario is the power will dissipate into nothing. You'll have wasted your coin and you'll get nothing, but you'll be whole. Worst case scenario is… well, worse. Give it your all."
She held his eyes for a moment longer, ensuring the warning landed. Caleb nodded back firmly. Just command all that mystical power with your mind, Foster. Nothing complicated about that.
Felicity placed the stone directly on the counter between them. It was the size of a robin's egg with a rough surface like an uncut gem. The stone glowed a dark, murky red, shifting as he looked at it. Yet something in its crude presence made his heartbeat quicken.
Caleb reached out and picked it up. Warmth pulsed against his fingers.
He met her eyes. "Thank you again, Felicity. For everything."
He turned and walked out of the Adventurer's Hall, straightening his back and setting his shoulders, each step sure. He had work to do, apologies to make, and a stone burning in his pocket.
It was time to take the first step on a very long road.