Chương 84: 83: New Crew

The next afternoon a small group of mounted men, along with two covered wagons, made their way onto the homestead. Wizard Rupert was seated next to a man holding the reins of the lead wagon, smiling that slightly unhinged smile of his. I couldn't help but grin back at him. So far, the smallish, slightly unkempt Wizard had shown none of the pomp and arrogance his noble counterparts had displayed. I had high hopes he'd be a good teacher as I learned the Wizard class.

His wagon was led by four beautiful Highlander Draft Horses. I presumed the man holding the reins was my new Farmhand, since he wasn't armed to the teeth like the five mounted men. A look at his ID showed his name was Laeth Calloway. He looked to be in his late teens or early twenties. He was of average height for this world, but he was well-built. His wispy moustache wasn't any better than Colin's. Not the greatest first impression there… He nodded his head to me as he set the brake lock on the wagon.

The wagon behind him was being steered by the most storybook stereotypical blacksmith one could ever imagine. As he stepped down from his wagon, I could see he was about my height, but he was bald and heavily muscled. He was also the darkest-skinned man I'd seen so far. His skin was a deep caramel color. Everyone I'd met so far had ranged from Casper white to a skin color that evoked a Native American heritage if they'd been on Earth. A quick ID scan said his name was Seamus O'Roarke.

I chuckled at the very Irish sounding name. The five men on horseback were an intimidating lot. The man who I assumed was their sergeant or lieutenant, since he was in the lead of their formation, looked so much like the main bad guy Native American from the Last of the Mohican movie that it was disconcerting. I'd watched the movie no fewer than a hundred times growing up, and seeing Magua's body double sitting on a horse in front of me caused an involuntary shudder to course through my body.

He, and for that matter all the crew, kept their heads shaved aside from a topknot of hair that fell to the middle of their backs. Their faces were clean-shaven as well. A quick ID said his name was Tieg Tuathan. He looked like he was maybe five foot ten, and he was lean but muscular. He was dressed in buckskin leathers. The other four men all looked like they could be his kids, and the one named Cathan Tuathan probably was. I assumed I'd get a formal introduction soon enough.

After Rupert made it down from his wagon, he came over and gave me a big hug. It was an unexpected, but not unwelcome, greeting. I was a hugger, always had been. On Earth, I liked to go in for the handshake, then turn it into a one-armed hug/handshake. Until this moment, I hadn't realized how much I'd missed that since I'd been on Talamh. No one here was a big hugger. Rupert stepped back and said, "Good to see you again John! I had such a grand experience the last time we met."

I laughed and replied, "I hope we don't have to lead a tractor cavalry charge again anytime soon." He smiled wistfully and shook his head.

"No, I probably won't be so lucky this time around." I snorted. I liked the man, but definitely didn't share his feelings on that topic. I asked him, "Do you want to introduce me to everyone? Or do they want to stow their gear and freshen up? I have dinner planned for about an hour from now. We could introduce everyone then?" I looked up at the mounted soldiers and said, "I can show you to your bunkhouse. I also have a good bathhouse for you all."

Emily, who so far had remained silent, looked at me with exasperation and said, "You and your baths." I looked at her and said, "I like taking a bath, is that a crime? A shower would be better, but they're not a thing here." Rupert laughed, then looked back at the men.

"Tieg, what do you want to do?" Tieg looked back at the rest of his men but didn't actually speak. The rest all nodded at him, so he turned around and said, "We will settle in. Which bunkhouse is ours?" I told him he could pick one from the three since they were all empty. With that, he and the four others rode towards the closest bunkhouse and dismounted. They left the reins of their horses on the ground for now. The horses stayed put. This book is hosted on another platform.

Read the official version and support the author's work. I'd heard of horses who were well-trained enough to stay like that. If I did the same with Chessie, she'd definitely wander off. Next came the blacksmith. He didn't offer me a hug, but he did give me a tight forearm grip that was clearly intended to check my strength. As a just graduated apprentice, he was quite a few levels behind me. His big muscles gave him a base boost over me, but he wasn't overcoming my tier 2 body. That made him pause, then smile.

"I'm Seamus, pleased to meet ya. Think ya could show me to me smithy?

""Certainly," I said.

"I'll show you to your cabin too. Let me talk with my last Farmhand real fast and we can get that done." He nodded his agreement and stepped aside as I introduced myself to Laeth. I used the forearm grip, I wasn't quite ready to attempt to change greeting culture quite yet with someone I'd never met.

"Nice to meet you," I said.

"Just so you know, I plan on having another cabin built for you so you're not the only one on your own in a bunkhouse, but it might be a month or two." He blushed, then quietly said, "The bunkhouse'll do just fine. No need to go out of your way for me." I looked at him for a moment. He seemed like a quiet, earnest kid as far as I could tell.

"That may be so, but everyone on this place is important to me. Go drop your stuff off in one of the other two bunkhouses, then we can deal with the horses and wagon." I looked at Rupert, who was still standing there with a wistful look in his eyes as he stared at the tractor.

"What's the situation with the wagons and horses?" I looked between Seamus and Rupert for an answer. Rupert wasn't paying attention, so Seamus answered for him.

"I'm told the wagons and the horses are yours sir."

"I was planning on buying a wagon and workhorses," I said.

"But I haven't so far." Rupert finally tore his eyes away from the tractor and re-entered the conversation.

"Oh. They're a parting gift from Smythe for saving the town. He said they're off the books, listed as lost in the war. Don't rightly know why that needed to be the case, but the good bishop loves himself some intrigue." He looked around, then said, "Bath time it is." Then he dropped his pack on the ground at my feet. I guess I'd just throw the pack on his cabin doorstep? I didn't want him wandering into Cara's cabin later. Laeth quietly raised his hand and said, "Sir.

I was a wagon teamster for the Trade Guild before Wizard Johnstone, uh, told me about all this. I can put my stuff away and handle the horses on my own if you want?"

"You sure?" I asked. I didn't want to walk all over the kid. He was clearly quiet and timid by nature.

"Yes sir, it won't take me long," he replied. I was busy, but I wouldn't make it a habit of leaving a big chore to someone on their own very often. So I said, "Alright. But if you need help, don't hesitate to ask. Make sure you're at dinner in an hour." Then I pointed to where the stables and equipment sheds were.

"Put the horses there." There's an empty shed you can park the wagons in over there. Just leave the barrels in the wagon for now." He nodded, then started moving the wagon he was driving to the shed. I looked back at Seamus, who was frowning at the kid. He looked at me and said, "I hope ya've got a good crew, otherwise that kid'll get bullied." I nodded.

"I'll have him with me most of the time. He's gonna be fine." That seemed to satisfy Seamus. He pointed at his wagon and said, "Will ya help me unload me supplies inta the forge? I've got me tools, and a supply o' materials based on the allowance ya gave the mayor." I nodded, and we got to work. With the two of us, even the 220lb iron ingots were quickly unloaded. I showed Seamus to his cabin and told him to meet us for dinner in a little while.

Once I made it back to the house, I checked in on the twice-baked potatoes Cara had finished. I begrudgingly admitted that hers were perfectly acceptable. She was probably the nail in the coffin on my cooking escapades, but I'd be busy enough with the farming soon enough. Soon enough, all the homestead's crew, new and old, filed in and grabbed plates. I sat with Emily until everyone was mostly done, then I got up and asked for everyone's attention. Once I had it, I launched into a little spiel.

"I want to thank everyone who is with us tonight. I know some of you were dragged into something you would probably prefer not to have ever been involved in. But, you're here now, and I intend for this place to be a safe haven for you now, and in the future." The Farmhands and Farm Mistresses looked to be with me. Funnily enough, so was Wizard Rupert. The soldiers were at least paying attention. That's all I could ask since I had zero sway over them.

I continued on, "For better or worse, this will be everyone's home for the foreseeable future. The bishop, and by extension, the emperor himself has decided that what we're doing out here is important. I'm not going to claim any of us need to be great patriots to the emperor, but I do think the potatoes, and maybe even my tractor, can make this world a better place in the long run. Now, if everyone would be so kind as to introduce themselves, I would greatly appreciate it." Everyone did as I asked.

When we got to the soldiers, Tieg stood and in a matter-of-fact tone gave his name, as well as his class and level.

"Tieg Tuathan, level 40 Spear Warrior." Then the man I assumed was his son followed suit, "Cathan Tuathan, level 33 Musketeer." Another man stood up, "Rick Landis, level 40 Sharpshooter." Then another, "Mick Green, level 40 Musketeer." Finally, the last man in their group stood up.

"I am Lorcan Deodrin, I am a level 40 Druid Cleric. The other men in this squad specialize in making things die. I try to keep them alive. Should anyone need my assistance while we are here, do not hesitate to call on me." That display seemed to have killed conversation around the room. These men were four of the most dangerous people on this continent, and one of the best healers. I didn't quite know what a Druid Cleric was, but it was clearly a big deal.

"Thank you all," I said.

"You're all welcome to continue hanging out for the evening, or you can go do your own thing. We will be providing a hot breakfast, and dinner, every day. Lunch will depend on what we're doing, but it'll be provided." I turned to Rupert and asked, "Do you want to come upstairs to talk about what you want to accomplish, or do you want to wait until tomorrow?" He looked around, then said, "Will there be cake?" I chuckled.

"We don't have cake tonight. I'm sure we can make some tomorrow though."

"Then let's wait until tomorrow," he said.

"I have some sweet cake and pear brandy calling my name in my cabin." With that, he got up and left. Wizards, I thought.