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Chapter 241: Homecoming
🕑 Added 2024-10-21 16:23:25 +0000 UTC---
Read "Chapter 242: Some Years Later" on Snowing Pine
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Mizu demanded Arthur put off telling anyone what they had decided until later, mostly so she could sneak away to look at yet another well before their decision brought more madness into their lives. By the time the night was done, Arthur was glad she had made that decision. It had been a long, long day. Holding on to a warm secret for a bit was a small price to pay to give for its own day.
Of course, as always, the system had other plans. After the first few minutes of the long walk back to the hotel, Arthur remembered he had a package to open. And once he did, any plans of a calm tomorrow evaporated away like dew at the zero point of a nuclear explosion.
System Wide Announcement! Path Widening Implemented.
Arthur Teamaster, formerly of Earth and now of Coldbrook, has made significant in-roads into the medicinal qualities of foods, especially as influenced and interacting with a cook’s intuition skills and the needs of individual patients.
Due to Arthur’s individual progress, an excess of offworld potential, a deep-seated desire to be less special in terms of his class, and the general sustained progress of the Demon World, the following general changes have been implemented:
At a small but real cost to the overall efficacy of the taste-enhancement elements of food-based classes, medicinal secondary skills will be become available to many food-based classes.
All food-based medicinal buffs are now capped at a slight effect, unless they otherwise enhance some element the food already possesses.
To maintain balance, all of Arthur’s innovations regarding storing majicka in food to buff the eventual product’s effects will now be limited to products meant for layman, non-food-class use. In compensation, secondary majicka skills meant to be used this way by rationers and other similar non-classer food supply classes will be easier to obtain.
As with all path widenings, the details are much more extensive than the general overview. Some of them have been provided for you already in a supplement attached to this announcement. Others will have to be searched out and learned through efforts, as usual.
Congratulations to the Demon World are in order for this significant step forward.
“Dammit, System,” Arthur said, to nobody in particular. “I guess it’s good we’re here for another day.”
Humming to himself and glancing over and over again at the spot on his wrist where he’d soon be wearing a bracelet, Arthur strolled back towards the hotel, slept, and became one step closer to returning home.
“You better be glad I keep my promises, Arthur. If they could have caught me, they would have kept you there for another week.” Talca reached down and patted Littal on the side, just as he had any of the dozens of times he had reminded Arthur of how lucky he was to have a good transporter on hand during the trip home. “You’d still be in that madness.”
“I know. And I’m very thankful. You are, however, still going far too fast.”
The capital had exploded at the news of a path widening, and from the moment Arthur got up the next morning until Talca had yanked him away from the crowd, chucked him into the back of the wagon and rescued him, he had been beset by well-wishers and curious librarians alike. There had not been a single moment in which someone was not either congratulating him, trying to get him to accept some kind of commemorative award, or asking him complicated, librarian-type questions he couldn’t answer.
Things were better now. Arthur had lost track of the days of travel, absolutely content to ride in the sun with a water demon on his arm, chewing up road in pursuit of his return home. The only wrinkle that stood in the way of a truly perfect trip was the fact that Talca had made a bet with Karbo.
“There is no too fast when that red menace is involved.” Littal grunted in agreement as Talca rehashed his reasons for pushing well beyond the capabilities of his passenger’s rider skills several times a day, whenever his majicka allowed for another hour-long boost. “I’m not going to lose. Especially when I’m giving you people a ride home for free.”
“I sort of like it,” Lily said. “I try to take naps when he starts, and whenever I wake up the trees are all different. It’s like I’m teleporting.”
“Well, some of us can’t sleep while the world blurs by.” Arthur steadied Mizu as they hit a particularly deep rut in the road, bounced a foot or so off the ground, and then crashed back to Demon World soil and continued onwards. “He must be far enough behind by now, right?”
“Wrong. You are being tactically shallow.” Talca whipped the reins down lightly and encouragingly on Littal’s back as the Hing pushed just a little harder than should have been possible towards Coldbrook. “He knows I’ll be pushing harder. So he might push even harder than that. Did you really have to invite him to your joining?”
“Karbo? Absolutely. He was almost the first person Mizu and I invited.” Arthur laughed. “He and Eito were the first people I met here. Did I ever tell you about that? I had never seen anything like them. I ran. Just took off in a random direction like a scared beast. They had to chase me.”
“And then?” Talca did not slow down the wagon even a single bit for the story, much to Arthur’s disappointment. “I’m guessing you didn’t get away.”
“And then I fainted. Itela had to calm me down.”
“Sounds like you,” Talca said. “There’s always something with Arthur.”
“Well, maybe less now. At least soon. Now that everyone can do what I can do, I should be able to spend more time just giving people tea. Like I’ve always wanted.”
“Yeah, I’m not holding my breath,” Talca said. “Now pay attention, even if it’s for the first time this trip. I think you are going to like what’s over the next hill.”
Arthur did pay a bit more attention. Suddenly, he realized he knew the exact combination of plants, smells, and sounds this forest was dishing up. This was Coldbrook terrain. They were close.
Talca’s promise wasn’t for nothing. As the wagon crested the next hill, Arthur found himself looking down on home. Somehow, it not only felt like it had been years instead of weeks. It looked like it too. Karra had apparently been working hard, and walls and houses that had barely had their foundations drawn when he left were now standing tall and strong, a combination of slapstone and excellent Rhodia-brick that he knew would outlive him.
“Oh, there it is.” Arthur sighed. “Look, Milo. Look, Lily. It’s home. I just wish Corbin was here to see it.”
“Are you sure he’s not?” Lily smiled. “I wouldn’t be surprised.”
“Not this time. The council had some kind of special job for him. And he took it. He told me to tell all of you he’d visit when he could.”
“Why didn’t he tell us himself?” Mizu asked. “I’ll miss him as much as you will.”
“I don’t think he likes goodbyes. Honestly, half the reason that guy goes into stealth so much in the first place is that he just can’t deal with…”
Arthur stopped mid-sentence as an achievement he had almost forgotten chose that moment to open itself.
Homecoming
Arthur, it’s good to talk to you again. You know the drill, or at least you will for just a few moments until I’m forced to put the same restrictions on your memory you chose so long ago back in place. This is a type of conversation I’m not really allowed to have very often, for reasons that are hard to explain.
While I have you, let me tell you some things. Since the very first time I had the pleasure of experiencing it, visitors to my world have always made me feel very lucky. Even when they found themselves surrounded by war, hardship, or other not-nice things, they have made things better in the ways they could manage. Every single one of them left a trail behind them that other people could follow towards better lives and ways of living, and you are no exception to that.
Far from it, really. Even with as much as all of my visitors from other places have accomplished, you need to believe me when I say that you have from the very first moment of your arrival been one of my very favorites. One of the few who I expected the most out of, and I knew would change the world the most.
It might not seem this way to you now, but what you’ve accomplished is, in its own small way, something that will eventually rival what the Bear did. He affected a moment. He gave an opportunity. But you blazed a path to healing, comfort, and progress that will never stop paying out for as long as this world stands. People will always, always get to live in a place that’s just a little bit better now. That’s something you did.
It’s an understatement when I say you belong here, Arthur. I can’t think of anyone who belongs here more.
And that comes with a choice. Up until now, your life has been a bit chaotic, which I’m sure you’ve noticed. That was necessary for reasons that are such a jumble of potential, transmigration considerations and other-things-I-can’t-explain that I couldn’t even start to cover them here. But now, with so much of your work done, those reasons hardly exist anymore.
So it’s up to you how things happen, from now on. If you like, you can remember this entire message. If you do, things will continue much as they have before. You will be, for better or worse, a person to whom interesting things always happen. You will always have excitement around the next corner. You will see new places and do new things. If you wanted excitement, there will be plenty, coming at you from all corners.
It’s an option you could take. And it would be a good life. But when you came here, you said you wanted something nice. I’ve never lost sight of that, I hope, even if it seemed to you like I might have.
If you choose the second option, you will be yanked out of the currents of your own potential and set back on solid, calm dry land. Like anyone, your future will contain excitement and changes all its own. But for the first time, those peculiarities of life will be much like anyone else might experience.
In many ways, you’ve always wished for more days that both started and ended in a warm, boring type of calm. For more time in your shop. For more dinners that were just about food and companionship, and for mornings that started out more slowly and fed into nights that ended conventionally.
If you pick the second option, you get all of that. I can’t promise that everything will always be good, or that every day will always be calm. That’s a guarantee even I can’t offer. But in large part, I can give you a chance for those things that you’ve never really had before. And, of course, you will forget this message ever existed, just like you did last time.
It’s your choice, of course. And I think I can guess which one you will pick. Either way, know I love you, and that I’ll always be watching you with a smile on my face.
You’ve come a long way, Arthur, and I’m proud of you. You belong here, and you are finally home.
Arthur closed his eyes and chose. It wasn’t a hard decision.
“Are you okay there, Arthur?” Lily poked aggressively at his cheek until he turned and looked directly at her. “You zoned out again. New skill?”
“No. Just an achievement. Nothing too exciting.” Arthur flicked the window over to anyone in the wagon who looked interested. “See for yourself.”
Homecoming
You’ve been on a very long trip, and you are finally where you belong.
Reward: A small amount of experience.
Arthur exhaled slowly as he settled back into his seat. Somehow, that little achievement had managed to confirm something he could barely believe a few moments ago.
The wagon rattled towards the town a bit slower now, but even outside the gates, he knew he was finally home.
Comments
Darren Stalder
I understand that what Arthur chose is what is best for Arthur and likely best for the author as well. But as a reader, I have to sob out a "No. No." It seems like we'll have to say goodbye to our friends here very soon. But at least we get to see the wedding of Arthur and Mizu, right?
Gunnar Crider
I'm assuming he chose to forget, and live a normal boring life. Good for him
Kevin McKinney
Nice wrapping up
Daniel
Thank you for the chapter. I love the system message during the achievement. It is such a nice touch even though Arthur can’t remember it.
Jacob Goodrich
While I truly enjoyed this story I agree with Link it does feel like the I'm done vibe. Also idk how I feel about Arthur giving up all his potential
STLCharles
I literally viscerally felt this chapter. Bravo!
Linkneo5
Great chapter as always. I hope this isnt the end of the series though. No spoilers if you are not reading ahead, but these last few chapters have been giving off the "Im done this story for now, off to start another project" vibes. Please say it aint so!
