Chương 25: Password

The sun had set by the time the pair reached the walls. Jordan formed his first impression of Featherift City in the gathering darkness: a solid, seemingly sky-high shadow that stood between him and quest completion. Presently, he sat leaning against an upright Heavenly Cauldron, tapping his feet impatiently. His 'seat' was a rocky outcrop about two hundred yards away from the nearest city wall. He'd sent Canyon ahead as 'recon' and now anxiously awaited her return.

Partly to alleviate his anxiety, but mostly to pass the time, he decided to consult some outside opinions. So, any of you gods have much experience smuggling yourselves into a walled city? Intelligence DC 13: success Fuxi:"Experience, no. But I am familiar with the accounts of known criminals and their conniving ways. The classic method is to hide amongst the cargo entering the city via legitimate channels. For that to work, however, you would need an in with a merchant already based inside the city.

Or so I've been told." Hmm, good try, but obviously not applicable to our current situation. What about you, Nezha? Just a wild guess, but you seem like the smuggliest of the bunch. Dexterity DC 13: success Nezha:"I'll take that as a compliment, human. And as a matter of fact, I do have first-hand experience slipping into places where I wasn't wanted." Oh? Do tell. Nezha:"You see, in my younger days, I dabbled as a professional racer. This would've been in Sunstead, at the height of the Chakram craze.

I'd disguised myself as a mortal and whipped the whole city into a frenzy with my antics, which was why—" I'ma stop you right there. Whatever you just said sounds absolutely bonkers, and I'd love to circle back someday, but let's focus on one thing at a time, yeah? How did you infiltrate the city exactly? Nezha:"The more ancient a city, the more riddled it is with hidden passages and underground tunnels. That was the case with Sunstead, especially back during the Vermilion Dynasty.

Featherift is younger as far as provinces go, but I'm sure its capital has its fair share of useful secrets." Huh. That … actually sounds promising. Any tips on how to look for these secret passages? Dexterity DC 17: failure Nezha:"What's the fun of roguery if all the solutions are spelled out for you? Go forth and wreak mischief, human; you have my blessing. Just don't expect me to also hold your hand." Jordan blew out in frustration.

He was just about to argue—out loud this time—when a cloaked silhouette clambered into view. Jordan jumped to his feet, caught off guard by the intensity of his own relief. He nearly reached out to grab Canyon in both arms, but just managed to restrain himself." How was it?" he asked breathlessly." It's about what we expected," she reported, much calmer by comparison.

"The city guards patrol the perimeters from atop the ramparts. But they're rather lax about security at the ground level. If there are any foot patrols outside the city walls, I didn't see any signs of them."" That's… good, right? And just to be sure, you didn't run into a guy holding up a sign that says'Mr Foxhill's party'?"" No, don't be ridiculous! Why would anyone do that?" Canyon looked genuinely aggrieved.

Alas, she didn't know anything about airport arrival terminals, nor had she yet fully grasped Jordan's brand of attempted humor. Perhaps all in due course. Either that, or Jordan would have to learn to be less annoying. The upshot was that it should be safe for the pair to roll the cauldron right up to the wall. They did so slowly and carefully, loath to make any noise that might carry to the city ramparts. That ate another Stormvaster hour (which was two hours by Earthling conventions!), taking the operation steadily toward 'dead of night' territory." Right," Canyon panted into her makeshift scarf as the pair touched up against the wall.

"Am I correct in assuming you have a plan of what to do next?"" Partially correct," Jordan admitted.

"All I know is we need to look for the entrance to a hidden passage. Maybe a loose stone? Or a marking of some sort?"" How are you so sure there is a hidden passage?"" I have my sources," Jordan demurred, and not without a slight smirk. Canyon didn't press the issue. Ah, the exquisite comfort of mutually assured secrecy! The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

Slowly and carefully, the pair made their way along the base of the walls, alert to any signs of potential roguery. It was tediously painstaking work at the end of a tediously painstaking day. So much so that Jordan had to fight to stay awake despite standing on two feet. On more than a few occasions, he even caught Canyon nearly dozing off. Even so, the pair was prepared to burn the midnight oil. If the search should take them until the dawn of another day, then so be it.

They didn't come this far only to throw in the towel before the very end. Well, thank Nezha, because the search did turn up something. And at a reasonable hour that left some buffer before dawn. Perception DC 16: success A passive [Perception] check! About damn time! At a fairly high difficulty class, too, requiring a whopping (+6) modifier to pass. Jordan had never been more thankful to his past self, who'd picked the Backstory Perk [So Close Yet So Far] purely out of mana greed.

Well, the extra points in [Wisdom] paid massive dividends now, as his eyes alighted upon…" See that?" Jordan nudged Canyon to get her attention.

"That one panel there." Yes. A stone block that was smoother, flatter, more regular than all the rest. Upon closer inspection, one could make out a rough rectangle formed by a series of blocks whose mortar joints lined up almost perfectly. A camouflaged door perhaps wide enough to fit two people side by side. Without waiting for confirmation, Jordan went ahead and acted on intuition. He reached up and pressed a palm against the outlier block, convinced it served as a kind of button.

Well, he wasn't wrong, but perhaps not in the way he'd expected. Glyph triggered: [Gatekeep]. Password? A system message! The stone block itself appeared unchanged, but pressing it had obviously activated a latent spell. A spell called [Gatekeep], no less… which felt to Jordan like something more than a coincidence. He and Canyon exchanged looks." You seeing this too?"" Yes."" Any idea what the password might be?" Canyon shook her head. Oh, curse Foxhill and his strict observance of trade secrecy!

Not that Jordan could blame the guy, of course; this was the Pathfinder's livelihood, after all." What can we do, just keep guessing until we get it right?"" If we try that, we'll be here until the sun comes up. Assuming the glyph doesn't lock us out before then." Incredible. It seemed the Stormvasters of the 59th year of the Radiant Vigor Era were on par with 21st-century Earthlings when it came to cybersecurity." Maybe we should check the other stone blocks," Jordan suggested without much hope.

"There's gotta be clues somewhere. Otherwise, what happens if a smuggler just… forgets the password?" Aiya, I knew this would happen. Jordan blinked as more system messages poured in. Who is it? I'll bet it's you, Cowbell, ya useless lout! Anyhow, you've triggered the 'forgot password' pathway of this here algo… algo- whatsit. Despite the message's highly personalized voice, it'd clearly been automated. Jordan tilted his head in bemusement.

Judging by the look on Canyon's face, this had come as a surprise to her as well. And here's the clue, for all the good it'll do you. What looks like it should run on four legs but instead sings with two throats? A riddle! Jordan's bemusement quickly turned to dismay. He didn't play well with brainteasers. Not that he disliked them, but he just was no good. Even with Vesselia the computer game, he was the type of player who would Google the solutions to puzzles, feeling guilty each time he did. Runs on four legs …

gotta be an animal of some kind, yeah? Sings with two throats. Sounds like a big clue, but I don't know of any double-throated animals, if such a thing even exists. Maybe it's a Stormvast-only thing? Should I ask the gods for—" A fiddle." Jordan stared at Canyon, thoroughly amazed even though he shouldn't have been. Of course! How did he not think of it? A horse's head, but instead of galloping on four legs, it let out beautiful melodies with its two strings.

And just like that, Jordan had a pretty good inkling of just who had inscribed this glyph in the first place… The stones groaned to life. A rectangle just wide enough to let through two souls slid open, revealing the darkened tunnel on the other side. The travelers exchanged another look, but only briefly. The path lay open before them, and there was no telling for how long. Another heave and push. Jordan managed to roll his cauldron past the doorway, with Canyon slotting in right beside him.

The wall groaned shut behind them, throwing them into pitch darkness. The place was dark, dank, and more than a little mildewy. It didn't feel like victory just yet, but it did feel a bit like getting over a steep and arduous hump. Feat enhanced. [Xihe's Blessing (Lv. 1) -> (Lv. 2)]: In recognition of your resilience, you've gained a permanent [2]-point upgrade to Constitution. CON 20 -> 21 HP: 220/220 -> 222/222 Make it to Featherift City in one piece.

A self-initiated quest, perhaps, but it'd been a quest all the same. One down. However many more to go until the Heavenly Cauldron was filled to maximum capacity. The babiest of baby steps, but Jordan would take it. And now, a heave and push to take one more step, side by side with a trusted companion.