Chapter 8: Old Acquaintances

Being a righteous knight on a white horse, with a kind gaze fixed on the horizon… I think anyone who knows me would confirm that isn’t me. Valor was a trait that went out of its way to avoid me, so I had no intention of going out of my way to find it. Realizing that any search for clues regarding the locations of other settlements could take me at least a couple of days of pointless wandering, I returned to the rock, despite the seemingly useful tracking skill. In fact, knowing the history and characters of this world, I could use my knowledge as a "transmigrator" if I truly needed to find someone. Putting the bandits on my boat and threatening to toss them overboard at speeds of at least a hundred kilometers per hour, I ordered them to set a course for the town with the flower shop.

"This boat is flying like we’re caught in a sandstorm!"

"This is some kind of trick, right?"

The criminals lamented, pressing themselves into the floorboards. The whirlwind propelled us just as it had on that windy day, forcing the boat to skip and spend long seconds in freefall until the runners touched sand again. The sand grains only seemed so fast because of the wind we were creating ourselves. My inspiration for creating this technique had been the sandstorm itself; sitting in those caves, I couldn't forget that amplifying factor where the abilities of all sandbenders, mine included, were pushed to their absolute limit.

Spending weeks reflecting on this, I arrived at what seemed like an obvious fact. Wind. It lifted tons of sand, allowing one to command the entire environment. With a strong wind, it’s easier to accelerate the particles.

******

"Hey, Anubis... is it true that my ancestors learned from benders of other nations?" Standing in the middle of a perfectly smooth granite room, whipping up a sandstorm inside the cavern, a question arose in my mind. But there was only silence in response. "I mean, if it's true, maybe sandbending movements can be enhanced by the proper techniques of other schools? Man, what I wouldn't give for an Airbending scroll to see if I’m thinking in the right direction. I’d give anything to understand their culture!"

[…]

"Yeah, when I actually need to make a choice or learn something important, you stay as quiet as a mouse."

[I have left you the gift of choice. Not all paths of your life are determined by a divine leash.]

"I get it, I get it. Don't look to you to learn the history of my people. I'll find out for myself once I'm out. But for now... how would an Airbender act to speed up the movement of sand?"

[Choose:]

[1 — Create a storm and maintain it for an entire week without a break (It will be easier to understand the principle of accelerating sand grains).]

[2 — Repel a hundred opponents with wind currents (You will master the intricacies of the whirlwind technique).]

[3 — Adapt your movement technique. Airbending is based on evasion; try to replicate it (By developing new movements, you will be able to emulate the lost benders).]

"...Your choices are unbearable."

******

Barely twenty minutes later, our fast-moving boat came to a halt within the boundaries of a settlement that hadn't changed at all. Two years had passed, yet time here seemed frozen, the same lifeless eyes and a dozen utterly unremarkable houses.

The bandits who had escorted me waved innocently, and pretending they were done with their job, tried to make a break for it. However, the sand gripping their legs thought otherwise. The boys' agonized faces turned back to me in resentment.

"Let us go! We did everything you asked!"

"Not everything... I'll be back soon." A diminished whirlwind carried the boat through the settlement. To the dozens of piercing stares directed my way, I responded with a gaze of my own, one that chilled to the bone. Every person here could have been responsible for what happened to me, but the prime suspect was the owner of the flower shop I now stopped in front of. Jumping off the boat and stepping inside, I realized nothing had changed… except the clerk.

Behind the counter, surrounded by vibrant, blooming flowers, was a grown woman with the same weary look as the previous trader. She wore inexpensive rags, her loose attire marking her as a sandbender. Seeing me standing at the entrance with a grim expression, she immediately tensed up.

"What do you want?" She looked me up and down gruffly, as is the custom here. I looked strange to her. Unlike the local preference for bandages and white outfits, I was decked out in black rags like some kind of tourist. But I had wrapped myself as securely as only a desert dweller could.

"Where is the man who traded here two years ago?" The blunt question caught her off guard.

"Two years? Oh, you mean Kaldair. He was killed." She shrugged casually, her eyes locked onto mine. "They say it was done by some guy he tried to turn into a slave. Honestly, I don't care who did it or why; just don't mess with me. I took over this business fair and square, everything by the rules of the desert."

She raised a finger threateningly, surrounding herself with a thin stream of sand. Everything was the same; the desert never changed. But as for the identity of the killer… it was obviously Tassad. He had figured it out himself and was the first to take revenge for what happened. Yet, my heart felt heavy. I remembered the "System" saying that killing the trader would ruin my relationship with my father. He wasn't the kind of man who killed easily.

He must have taken the blow of my loss very hard. Lowering my gaze in disappointment, I walked out.

"...Thanks for the info. Didn't mean to trouble you."

"Huh? Y-yeah, no problem."

With a creak of the door, I returned to the boat. The bandits were twisting about in a futile attempt to escape, but they quickly quieted down at the sight of me. I sat on the runner in deep thought, wondering what to do next. Essentially, Anubis hadn't trembled at the prospect of my death, it’s a good thing he doesn't always listen to me, which meant I could go wherever I wanted. I could leave the desert entirely, or wander here to settle my affairs.

There was one interesting place that could help me learn the history of not just my ancestors, but allow me to learn various useful things. Though, there simply didn't exist a map in the world that pointed to it. So first... I would visit Tassad.

"You bastards," I turned to the noisy bandits who were punching their heavy shackles, instantly commanding their attention. "Which way to the Misty Oasis?"

******

Home, sweet home. Despite the memories, the path through the desert hadn't been as stifling or as long as before; a few hours of travel brought me back to my home settlement. At the entrance, I was met by the same scruffy sign that would surely fall sooner or later, and nearby, children were running around playing with scorpions. In the center, the city's landmark, a block of ice, remained, though its size had significantly diminished over time.

The residents were just as gruff, drilling me with their stares. I looked like a tourist inspecting every corner of an unfamiliar place. Except I was doing it out of a warm sense of nostalgia; now, this settlement looked several times smaller than it did in my childhood. The laps I used to run along the fence could now be finished in a minute, tops. The "tall" houses couldn't actually compare to the giant pillars of the vulture-wasps.

"...I wonder, Tassad must have opened a woodworking shop. Where is it? Or should I stop by my mother’s bar first? She probably blamed my father for what happened to me." The deadly battles on the lowest floor of the desert weren't nearly as frightening as the upcoming reunion. Approaching the bar, ignoring the dozens of appraising looks from the locals, I stepped inside. The stifling room was, as usual, filled with bounty hunters, bandits, and tourists from other lands.

It might seem strange that people from the "Green Continent" would flock here at all, but no two people had the same reason for being here; every case was unique.

But… my mother, who should have been cleaning the room and delivering drinks as usual, wasn't there. Another woman was working in her place.

"Of course... what an idiot I am. Why would she keep working for copper if a woodworking business can support the whole family?" Ordering a fruit cocktail in a cup made of ice, I received a delicious drink. I leaned against the bar and looked closer at the bartender. "Hey, do you know where the wood trader is located around here?"

"Wood? We don't have any places like that here," the bartender replied gruffly, wiping down ice bowls. He looked me over like some kind of freak, then simply stepped aside to chat with another patron, occasionally glancing at my frozen face.

"Hey, kid, maybe you'll order something for us too?" In a moment of procrastination and heavy thinking, I was surrounded by a crowd. A typical sight in this place: a dozen people cornering one to scam them out of money. But as soon as I turned to them, slightly lowering my sand-mask, a few guys in the crowd suddenly widened their eyes.

"Dagoth?"

"I don't believe it."

Their friends turned to the speakers. Quickly realizing I was an acquaintance, the bandits sighed in disappointment and dispersed throughout the hall, but the two who recognized me froze in place and carefully lowered their masks… Bael and Hamri.

"Kid, is it really you?"

"How did you survive?"

Rubbing their eyes and realizing I wasn't a mirage, they immediately broke into smiles and rushed to hug me. New swords, more expensive-looking ones, bounced on their belts. Their faces lacked the old weariness of a trader’s hard life.

I can’t say my expression softened. On the contrary, since arriving here, my mood had been plummeting.

"...Why are you two running with a crowd like this? Where did you get the money for such expensive gear?"

"Um..."

At that moment, they turned slightly red.

"You see," they looked at each other and shrugged. "Your father fired us."

"…"

"After what happened... Tassad packed his things and left for the Green Continent with his wife. He claimed that with his sandbending, he could earn a living outside the desert now."

"He didn't need assistants for a business like that. So we stayed here, and he opened a shop somewhere else."

They put on sad but understanding smiles. There wasn't a hint of accusation in their words, only disappointment that things turned out that way.

"Of course, at first, we all spent a long time looking for you! We found out some bastard hired bandits to take you alive, but... we just couldn't find you anywhere."

"Man, I just don't believe it. Where have you been all this time?"

So, my father decided to start a more peaceful life. I didn't know the reason why he hadn't done it sooner, but what pushed him in the end wasn't hard to guess. I should have been happy that the people who raised me got a chance at a wealthier future. Turning around, I silently walked toward the exit.

"Hey, Dagoth, let’s chat over a drink!"

"I'm dying to know where you were."

Stepping outside and reaching the boat, I looked grimly at the two.

[Choose:]

[1 — Agree (Your relationship will become friendly. You will be able to join the gang).]

[2 — Invite them on your journey (You have decided that followers are necessary, but only among those tested by time).]

[3 — Be rude (Your relationship will be severed).]

I literally clenched my fists… I have no idea how Anubis viewed this, but for me, there was only one option. It was absolutely non-negotiable.

"I don't know how your lives turned out, but I can't believe you’ve become bandits. You sicken me." The guys' faces froze. Glancing at their expensive gear and their smirking faces, I raised a hand, releasing the silent companions who had escorted my boat throughout my travels, and threw them at the boys' feet. "I don't want to soil my hands on trash like you."

Jumping onto the boat, I prepared to simply get out of here. It doesn't take much brains or skill to wander the desert looking for what no one has seen. Memorizing the locations of the villages, I prepared to fly as far away as possible.

"How else were we supposed to live?!" Hamri’s frustrated cry rang out behind me.

"Brother, it's not worth it."

"Get the hell away, Bael, I'm talking to Dagoth! Answer me, how are two ordinary people supposed to survive after working for your Father their whole lives, supporting him in everything, and then being tossed aside with empty pockets!"

"...And is there a lot of blood on your hands?" Tilting my chin up, I looked down at them. Both clenched their fists in irritation.

"Who gives a damn? The one who can adapt survives—we’re in the desert! And we’re raking in a thousand times more than we did working for your old man. You think we regret anything? Come down and look at how expensive my weapon is."

"Hamri, he’s a bender..."

"Who disappeared to god knows where! Instead of blaming us for something, you should realize it all started with you. Showing up two years later like nothing happened! You couldn't have come back sooner? Hey, wait, where are you going!"

My boat began to move. The rising whirlwind started to carry me away from this cursed place.

"And you don't even want to pay us back?! You brat..."