Chương 1314: [1230] - Y06.130 - Mo Dunes

"Look at this handsome fellow," Adam called out, as though he was praising his son for dressing up so adorably. Dunes shook his head slightly, running his fingers along the hem of his outer vestment, cut shorter than those of the Aldish, almost entirely pure black, save for the silver patterns across the front, letters of Aswadic script which spelled out the word for sword, written in a way so the word itself looked like a sword.

Within the design, the clasp was hidden, but allowed the vestments to remain snug against the Aswadian, even over his full plate. Upon the back of his vestments, the symbol of Lady Arya displayed proudly in silver.

"I must wear it because I am from Black Mountain," Dunes said, fixing an amulet under his vestments, so the sword pointed directly towards it.

"Why are you only wearing it now?" Adam asked.

"I did not wish to be seen in it without a freshly formed beard," Dunes joked, running a finger along the outline of his beard, which had been lined by an Aswadian hand, his own, that morning.

"It is because we are upon Aswadian soil and I am upon official business of Black Mountain. You must call me Kal Dunes, Executive, or Mo Dunes, if it pleases you."

"Mo Dunes?"

"Mo is closer to Brother, whereas Kal is closer to Sir."

"Oh, I see. Mo Dunes. Big Mo." Adam chuckled to himself lightly, but saw the gaze within Dunes' eyes, serious, though still warm.

"Right, of course, Mo Dunes. You do look great though! The vestments suit you."

"I must, since it is time to show off my home to you," Dunes said, his lips trembling into a wide smile. Dunes looked towards the sky, the dawn's rays falling all upon them.

'It would be humorous if I were to return with the ability to cast Fifth Gate spells.' Dunes let out the thoughts within the sigh, falling away with the wind, understanding within his heart that he could do no such thing, not when their lives were still at stake. Even with the precious sword they came upon through sheer luck, would the Priest Commander, with his great pride, allow Dunes to leave for the business? John eyed up the pair, speaking so casually with one another, each an existence far above himself.

He glanced aside towards the tip of his spear, perpetually bloody with the agony of death from long ago. A spear, a humble weapon, the humbles of weapons one could argue, and a weapon that felt so comfortable within his hand. He had practised with it that morning, as best as he could, quickly taking a dip to wash off his sweat before the group finished up their breakfast and made their way upon the ship.

Brittany stared out to the sea, feeling the same pain within her heart as the father, though unlike the father, she carried a pair of shortblades that were worth more than the spear, and even if she did not wield either, she still carried a deadwood bow. Uwajin yawned, tasting the salty air, her lungs expanding as she breathed in deep, trying to wake herself up. She glanced aside towards Ashuk, who burned with the want to fight, to stretch his muscles, to face Adam at his strongest.

It was that kind of feeling, the kind she understood well, for she was an Iyrman. Except, she had spent most of her time snoozing, with no real determination beyond the typical wish to fight and sleep. She felt the tingle of the magical blade upon her back, that which had been gifted to her.

'Once Amokan becomes Chief, I will need to support the family as the Head,' Naqokan thought, staring out to the ocean, watching the waves bobbing back and forth as she stood beside her half asleep companion.

'Damokan and Kalokan are growing well, Minakan and Alykan, the twins will guide their younger sisters. I will need to watch over Inakan and Mokan.'

"Should I step out too?" muttered the sleepy voice, the young woman yawning. This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. Naqokan turned her head slowly to take in the sight of her yawning companion, who stood tall with her arms crossed, blinking away the bleariness. She, who often had to fight off her sleepiness until she was finally awake during battle, had never displayed much of a willingness to step out beyond her duties.

A shame, considering she was the strongest of their particular group. From the Silver Fate Squad, Nirot, Uwajin, Naqokan, Faool, Laygak, and Bavin, there were quite a few who were considered Golden Children, in some ways. Nirot technically reached that status because of how difficult it was to kill her, but Uwajin and Naqokan, and even Faool, were considered such due to their natural abilities. Laygak and Bavin fell short, Bavin only slightly. Uwajin, however, was different.

She was different even compared to Naqokan, for Naqokan had reached the peak of her strength right before she had become an Expert, but Uwajin had reached the peak of her natural strength before she stepped out of the Iyr. Even compared to the likes of Timojin and Amokan, Uwajin held the natural might that belonged to the likes of the granddaughter of the Bearded Dragon.

If it hadn't been for her sleepiness, and her want to live an easy life, she would have left a mess in her wake that would make even the Mad Dog seem like a puppy. In all her years, Naqokan had hoped Uwajin would step forward, but she had long lost that hope when Uwajin brushed her off.

'It sounds tiring,' Uwajin had admitted, though she was more than eager to train to fight in case she was needed by the Iyr. It was not that she didn't want to grow more powerful, it was that she had no desire to make a name for herself across the nearby lands.

'What happened?' Naqokan thought. Even after she had faced Rock Bear's daughter, Uwajin hadn't felt the burning desire within her, but this morning, when the wind was so sharp, the air salty, the town so peaceful, Uwajin spoke such words.

"Naqokan, should I become the Chief?" Uwajin asked, as though she could make a play for it now, though considering how she was still Iyrmanly, she had the chance, though she would certainly lose to Amokan and Timojin, who were able to think more long term.

"It would be too tiring," Naqokan replied, half a joke, but also because Uwajin wouldn't make a good Chief, so her efforts were wasted in that way.

"You are right," Uwajin replied, burying that desire almost instantly, the young woman staring out towards the sea.

"Should I become a Paragon?"

"You should."

"Okay." With that, Uwajin flexed her entire body, filled with determination, allowing it to overwhelm her, and she overwrote the laziness within her heart.

"You have the sword, so you should use it," Naqokan teased.

"I will ask Adam to gift you such a blade too," Uwajin said. Naqokan laughed, but stopped as Uwajin marched her way to the half elf, the young Iyrman quickly grabbing at her friend. Unfortunately for her, her muscles hadn't awoken, and Uwajin had already committed to her new dream, and walked slightly quicker than Naqokan had expected.

"Hmm?" Adam asked, noting the glare within Uwajin's eyes, the grey skinned Iyrman flexing off the sleepiness repeatedly.

"Sure, I can get you a nice sword too, Naqokan. I'll send word back to my darling wife!" Naqokan was glad that the half elf had mentioned his wife, unable to take Adam's bullying, for her heart held the wound of a shock she hadn't expected, from Uwajin's proposal to become a Paragon, to asking for a sword for Naqokan.

"Now that you mention it, shouldn't we outfit you in some nice weapons?" Adam mused aloud.

"I'll think of some enchantments and I'll pass them along. Other than hitting harder, do you have any requests?" Naqokan wasn't sure how to respond to Adam's earnestness, while the half elf closed his eyes, no doubt thinking of his wife once more, since his lips twitched into a smirk. Nirot remained silent, watching the scene unfold before them, glancing aside to Laygak and Faool, who didn't say a word. She thought back to when she fought that python, a tale that she wasn't sure she could repeat even now.

Somehow she had managed to defeat such a vicious python by herself, no magical axe, just her raw strength, raw fury, raw toughness. None of her companions had even begun to match such a feat, even Uwajin and Naqokan had struggled to face one together. If she had magical equipment, couldn't she also surpass the Nirot of all those years ago? Bavin remained silent, watching the scene without much of a thought.

He thought of his twin sister, who had been so suspicious of the half elf, but upon his return, when he had somehow managed to defeat her, her eyes beamed with such a delight.

'We should bring Lavin next time…'

'What kind of weapons should I gift them?' Adam thought.

'Greater Enhanced? I'll make them something like Seventh Sky, I guess?' John stared at the Iyrman who had suddenly claimed she was going to become a Paragon, and had asked for a magical weapon for her companion so shamelessly, and then the half elf who thought deeply about gifting them all magical weapons.

'The world is larger than I thought…'