Braided Sky
patreon
PftA Book 4 - Chapter 14 - Family Dinners
🕑 Added 2024-11-07 23:20:31 +0000 UTC‘You are not allowed to arm locals with weapons and gear above the planet’s threshold,’ Lisa informed me as I sketched out a few simple enchantment designs after breakfast.
I sat up straight and focused on my Interface Assistant. ‘Why not?’
‘It’s in the rules you received upon leaving the dungeon,’ she replied. ‘There was an additional supplement downloaded upon our arrival on Earth. The Alliance forbids such activities because they imbalance the world.’
Nothing like that was ever openly stated, but I supposed it made sense. Arming a bunch of low-tier people with mid or high-tier weapons created an obvious inequity, removing even the possibility of fairness between those at the same tier.
Since such practices weren’t specifically banned by the Accords, the restriction had to be an Alliance one as opposed to something enacted by the system itself.
‘Is that a blanket prohibition, or are there exceptions?’ I thought to my ever-present helper as I eyed the designs I’d already drafted. I was pretty sure I already knew the answer, but I figured it was better to check.
‘For all intents and purposes, consider it a blanket prohibition,’ Lisa replied. ‘Even your sister-in-law is forbidden from crafting anything beyond PT3 items. Had she not already crossed the threshold, she would have been allowed to craft LT4 items, provided she acquired the materials herself. But, since that is not the case…’
Unsurprisingly, Bell had reached Tier Four while I was away. Between the secondary Academy and the Enchanters’ Academy, she’d had ample opportunity to progress in a relatively safe environment.
And it wasn’t just through her professions, either.
Both of her former schools had mandatory programs to assist students in gaining combat experience as well. Given her background, gaining a few extra levels from delving wasn’t difficult to accomplish.
“Then what can I do to help?” I asked aloud. Nobody could hear me from outside the pod, so I wasn’t worried about coming off as crazy.
After a little bit of spatial manipulation, the spare room had been set up with four individual pods, one for each grouping of adults and a separate pod for Amie and the twins to share. The setup allowed us all to stay with the grandparents instead of needing to find separate accommodations while also keeping things from feeling overly crowded.
‘Craft PT3 items and provide training?’ Lisa suggested.
I frowned. I didn’t want to spend a long time on Earth training people, especially when, by all accounts, the problem shouldn’t exist in the first place.
Alliance teams had been assigned to Earth for the first five years to ensure the rifts beyond the local populous’ ability to handle were cleared regularly enough not to break. So, for this many creatures to be in the area, something had to have gone wrong.
Either the Alliance teams had failed or, more likely, whoever took over when they left had dropped the ball somehow.
Gabby had mentioned there weren’t enough PT3 groups to handle the local rifts, but I didn’t get the sense that it was so dire that they were dealing with rift breaks.
Yet the presence of multiple rift creatures in the local area implied otherwise.
It was worth looking into since a failure on the Alliance’s part meant they would be inclined to fix the problem. Further, if the issue was caused by the noble in charge of the territory, they could (and would) be replaced.
A little danger was expected, given how rifts manifested initially. Some rift beasts were inevitably going to get away and breed. That was just a fact of life without someone much higher tier intervening.
And since total safety bred complacency and often led to worse outcomes, I didn’t see that happening. In fact, that was probably why the Alliance was so against higher-tier assistance in the first place.
But just because I understood why things were left in the hands of the locals didn’t mean I liked leaving my extended family in an unsafe situation. I’d have to examine other locales and see if they had similar problems. If not, maybe it would be worth convincing my relatives to relocate.
= = =
“Well, I won’t say no if you want to give me some fancy toys,” Gabby said at dinner later that night when I offered to upgrade her gear. She and a few other family members had joined us for dinner, though not everyone had been able to make it on such short notice. “It probably won’t help much, though.”
“Why not?” I asked.
“Cause the problem ain’t a lack of weapons,” Lester, Gabby’s little brother, chimed in. “It ain’t even a lack of adventurers. Since the old Mayor got booted last year, there’ve been loads of people swarming the area, looking ta level up. It’s already tons better than before. You shoulda seen it then! It was so bad, the adventurers could barely get to the rifts to clear ‘em!”
Lester was a lot younger than Gabby. Technically, he was only her half-brother, but since they’d been raised in the same home, they didn’t recognize the difference.
He’d been in elementary school when the reintegration happened. He was sixteen now and had awoken an Earth affinity the year before.
“How did it get so bad?” I asked.
“That old Mayor was a real piece of work,” Grandpa Paul said from the head of the table. “He started charging a seventy-percent tax on anything coming out of the rifts.”
“Yeah, nobody wanted to pay that much, so most of us left to find better rifts,” Gabby added. “There were still enough desperate adventurers willing to pay that much, so things were okay for a while. But then the blizzard hit and nobody could get to the rifts for a few days. It normally wouldn’t be a big deal since it takes a while for a rift to break, but because they were already being under-delved, they all broke practically at the same time.”
I could see how something like that might happen, especially if the city and the surrounding area weren’t being closely monitored by the nobles in charge.
“Me and my party came home when we heard. A lot of locals who’d left did,” she continued. “The new Mayor only charges twenty percent and does his best to make sure every rift slot is filled. He does good for all but the PT3 rifts. There ain’t enough adventurers willing to challenge those yet, even after nearly ten years. Most who get that far leave Earth, which makes it hard for us to keep things in check.”
“Didn’t you say a lot of your friends were planning to leave soon, too?” I asked curiously.
Gabby focused on her plate for a few moments as the attention shifted toward her. She looked at her parents before looking at me.
“Yeah,” she said slowly, as if not wanting to admit it. “Once they reach Tier Four, there ain’t much reason to stick around besides family.”
“Gabriella,” her mom exclaimed. “You’d better not be planning to run off to the dungeon! I heard you talking about it when you thought I wasn’t listening.”
Gabby winced. “I wasn’t planning on it, Ma! It was just something we were looking into.”
I pressed my lips together to keep myself from commenting. The impression she’d given me was that her friends planned to enter the dungeon, though she hadn’t directly included herself in that plan.
Maybe she was going to stay behind to watch over her family. She’d been quick to go back to them when the reintegration kicked off, so it wasn’t very hard to believe.
But looking at her guilty expression, I somehow didn’t believe that was the case.
“You’d better not! It took Emie more than eight years to escape from that place, and that was with all the fancy gadgets and magic she got for joining that sect!”
Interestingly, Gabby’s mom didn’t bother glancing in my direction as she talked about me. She was wholly focused on the young Fire Mage sitting next to me.
I didn’t bother correcting her misconceptions, either. I doubted it would do any good.
“Those friends of yours are going to get you killed if you ain’t more careful! I mean, really!” My aunt huffed in exasperation. “First you’re going into those death traps and fighting monsters, then you started hunting the ones that escaped… now you’re talking about risking your life in a dungeon!”
“I said I wasn’t planning on going, Ma!” Gabby exploded, drawing attention from nearby diners. “And even if I did, ain’t nothing nobody can do about it! Not you, not Pa! Nobody but maybe Emie could do a darn thing to stop me! And I don’t think she’d try. Heck, she might even think it’s a good idea.”
Gabby looked at me with hope, as if she thought I’d come to her rescue.
“This is not my argument,” I said with raised hands, neither confirming nor denying her claim. If it wasn’t completely inappropriate, I would have teleported away instead of getting any more involved in the conversation than I already was.
But regardless of my discomfort, the truth was, I’d absolutely support Gabby if she wanted to enter the dungeon. I’d even help her prepare – to a point.
Undeterred by my lack of overt support, Gabby returned her focus to her parents. “Well, I don’t see y’all stepping up to keep the rifts from breaking! How about y’all stop judging me when I’m one of the few people trying to keep everybody safe!”
“It ain’t about keeping everyone else safe. It’s about keeping you safe,” Gabby’s mom countered.
I tried my best to ignore the conversation as I focused on my meal. Limited to low-tier materials, the food was acceptable, but not great. Even the most basic transmuted meals made out of higher-tier materials were superior.
Despite my best attempts to avoid it, I was eventually coerced into sharing my opinion.
“If Gabby wants to challenge the dungeon, knowing full well that she can’t leave until she reaches at least Tier Seven, then I’m all for it. As long as she really understands what she’s getting into, she should be able to make her own decisions.”
I paused as several of the ‘older’ generations immediately objected to my statement. A few even criticized me for not wanting Justin to risk himself in the dungeon but saying it was okay for Gabby.
“Look,” I held up my hand to stop the back and forth. “This isn’t the same thing as Justin. Gabby isn’t being kidnapped and forced into something she doesn’t want. She knows what to expect, even if things might have changed a little since I entered.
“And the more you tell her she can’t do something, the more likely she’s gonna try to prove you wrong. Gabby hasn’t even said she wants to enter the dungeon with her friends, so I don’t know what all of you guys are getting so worked up about.”
The redhead gave me a look of appreciation tinged with a hint of vindication. “Thanks.”
“No problem,” I replied before standing up. I’d already lost my appetite. “It was nice to see you all again. Unfortunately, I’ve been mostly isolated for a really long time and haven’t gotten used to being around people all that much.”
I looked at Gabby. “That’s something to consider if you do decide to enter the dungeon. The seventh floor is particularly hard for extroverts.”
Looking back at the rest of the family, I added, “I already paid, but I didn’t leave a tip. I don’t know if that’s still something people do now, so if it is, I’m sure you guys can manage it. I’ll probably be back by morning.”
Without waiting for a response, I Teleported away.
Comments
Tucker Glick
Emie is now the fun wise grandma 😂
Adurna
Belittling people you disagree with is indeed a common reaction and anyone looking young is likely to get a related label.
Corwin
Lol Emiee probably has a few people thinking she was acting like a teen. Though she handled it like an adult
Mike
Emie to the rescue🎉? If she can handle the stress of family reunions 😂
