Mayor.

The importance of this title was lost on Jack. On him and quite a few of the villagers, going by their blank faces. Why would a ‘Mayor’ be more important than a Village Head? In truth, Jack could understand… kind of. A Mayor sounded more important. But how does changing the title of Helmrest’s leader affect the village? And why would Mr. Winnow becoming a Mayor be better than Elia becoming Village Head.

Elia, herself, was not among those who did not understand.

“What are you saying, Mr. Winnow?” she asked.

He chuckled.

“I have said exactly what I meant to say. I ask the people of Helmrest to choose me as their Mayor.”

“That doesn’t make any sense. Helmrest doesn’t have a Mayor. It never did. The leader of Helmrest is called a Village Head, whether they have the Class or not.”

“Truly? And why is that?” he asked, seemingly good-natured.

Elia stopped to think for a few seconds, before frowning.

“I will not say ‘tradition’, if that is the answer you wanted from me. I know how much you care about tradition. Helmrest has a Village Head instead of a Mayor, because Helmrest is a village and not a city. Regardless, that is not the point-“

“No, no, let’s not gloss over what you just said. Helmrest is a village. But it could be more.” He smiled at her.

Jack didn’t actually understand the severity of this distinction, but Elia did, by the looks of it. She gaped at Mr. Winnow as the proverbial penny dropped, before yelling at him.

“You want to sell out Helmrest? You have no right, you- you- And you’d do that just to keep your position?”

Instead of responding to her, Mr. Winnow addressed the crowd.

“Do you see it now, people of Helmrest? Do you see how she tries to keep Helmrest in the mud? Choose me and I will see Helmrest rise up!”

The people were too bewildered to take sides, though. Jack was bewildered too and was about to ask for some clarifications, when someone beat him to the punch.

“Uh, Mr. Winnow?” a woman asked. “What is this with you wanting to become Mayor? And what did you mean by ‘more’?”

“He wants to relinquish Helmrest’s independence.” Elia answered in his stead. “Helmrest is big for a village, wealthy too, but not enough to qualify for being a town. The only way that can happen, the only way Mr. Winnow could become a Mayor is if Helmrest becomes a part of one of the local powers. So, which is it, Mr. Winnow? Galdarad or Ameron? Which kingdom would annex Helmrest, if you’d have it your way?”

“There would be no ‘annexing’. And I believe that becoming the subjects of the Lord of Ameron would benefit us greatly.” He responded, somewhat miffed.

“Ameron? Are you mad?! At least the Baron only persecutes his subjects with taxes! If we become part of the kingdom of Ameron, that Lord will use our men as soldiers in his little wars.”

“Do not listen to her, my neighbors. She speaks of what she does not understand. Becoming part of the kingdom will allow Helmrest to grow. Will allow us to grow. Our village would become a town and we would have the protection of a kingdom! She wishes for us to remain primitive because of an unmitigated lust for power!” he snarled. “That and the fact that no unwanted vagrants are allowed into the empire.” He said, eyeing Jack balefully.

“Those are filthy lies! It is you who wishes for power! You would damn us all just to keep hold of your influence!” she shouted back.

The discussion carried on for some time. Almost an hour, to be precise, yet the nature of the arguments never changed. No one talked about what they wished to improve in the village, though Elia did try. But every time she started listing her objectives, Mr. Winnow would launch a thinly veiled insult or simply spoke over her, forcing Elia to defend herself. It was like a verbal fight, where one tried to fight cleanly, while the other tried to drag the fight into the muck.

The villagers seemed to be interested at first, but as the arguments repeated themselves and nothing new was added, people started to trickle out of the crowd. Eventually, the two stopped shouting at each other, no clear winner being apparent. As Mr. Winnow left and the crowd dispersed, Jack went to Elia, to accompany her back to her shop.

And hopefully find out what was that all about.

“Hey, Elia, are you all right?”

“Hi Jack. I am. Just… worked up. I swear, if I could just get my hands on Mr. Winnow right now, I would just…” she said, miming a chocking gesture.

“I get how you feel.” He laughed.

She gave him the stink eye, before relenting.

“Sorry, Jack. I’m just tired. And shocked, I guess.”

“Yeah, about that. I didn’t really understand some of the things that were said. Well, most things.”

She sighed, but tired as she was, she still played the part of the teacher.

“I keep forgetting you’re not from around here. Tell me, Jack, what can I clear up?”

“Well, what’s this with Helmrest becoming a town by only being part of… Ameron?”

“Ameron. It’s a kingdom, north from here. Though only in name, since kingdoms require actual kings. Ameron only has a Lord, but he has the Class from what I’ve heard. And Helmrest could become a town on its own, in time. At the moment, though, it’s too small. In both people and coin.”

“Alright. But why does it matter if it’s a town or a village?”

“Eh, if it matters or not depends on what kind of person you are. If you just want to live your life, you could live in a village and have no issue with that. If you want to grow, prosper, maybe get a Class, you’d have more chances in a town or a city. See, towns are bigger by their very nature and when a settlement is classified as a town, it attracts more business. More business, means more coin, means better lives for the people living there. You get access to new professions, safety assured by guards patrolling the streets, schools, better healers and the list goes on and on.”

“I see. So, if you bow down to this Lord, you get all that in less time than you’d normally would.”

“Yes. Though, even if we would have reached that by ourselves, some kingdom or another annexing us would still be an issue.” She said, frowning.

“Why?”

“Because, independent villages are a copper a dozen. They don’t matter. But an independent town? That’s just ripe coin for the taking by neighboring kingdoms. And left unattended, an independent town might become an independent city. See where I’m going with this?”

“…no?” he answered honestly.

She sighed, but pushed on.

“An independent city might become a local power, sort of like a proto-kingdom, which would still continue to grow. And none of the local rulers want competition. That’s how they got the Baron of Galdarad.”

“Oh, right, you mentioned him. Would it be better to become part of his kingdom?”

“A bit? Jack, you have to understand, being part of a kingdom is not all that good, not for a settlement that’s just starting off. True, we’d get to skip a few steps and we’d have security. But we could manage all that makes a city great by ourselves. If, however, we become part of Ameron, we’d have to pay whichever taxes are imposed on us. Our people would be marching off to wars and that Lord has been involved in more wars than I could count. The Baron isn’t much better.”

“Got it. Helmrest could become great on its own. Becoming part of a kingdom is going to be a problem anyhow, no need to hurry towards it now.”

“I don’t know, Jack… Politics was never my strong suit. Maybe in time we could become part of a kingdom and negotiate our entry on equal terms. Right now? We’d be considered nothing better than field serfs.”

And if the people of Helmrest would be considered peasants, then me and Mrk would be… what?

As if to drive home the thought in Jack’s head, Elia continued.

“But as horrible as that is, it isn’t what truly concerns me. Jack, Mr. Winnow isn’t doing this because of a misguided sense of loyalty to his village. He noticed how the people have started to turn against him and his family and he’s using this as a method of holding on to his power. No, of gaining more power, actually.”

“Yeah, I got that. I don’t have any doubts that Mr. Winnow would do anything to get his hands on more… everything.”

“Yes, but I don’t think you realize just how dangerous that is. Right now, the Winnow family is ruling Helmrest like minor nobility. If he has his way and the people accept Helmrest becoming part of Ameron, then he’d become a Mayor. And a Mayor isn’t like a Village Head. He’ll have a lot more power. Gods forbid, he may even change his Class. If he gets that… I worry.”

“Because he’ll treat people badly?”

“Not just that. A Village Head can be changed, if they fail their people. But a Mayor, with the backing of a Lord? No, he’d just rule for life. Maybe have Louis step in, once he’s old enough. And with that kind of power… I don’t think you’d be able to keep your forest. And I don’t think he’d let you, Mrk or Lola stay in the village or in the forest.” She said, before giving out a sardonic smile. “Or me, I guess.”

“Damn. What do we do?”

That seemed to pull her out of her trance and get her back in the present.

“Right now? Nothing. At least in regards to antagonizing the villagers. And if we were to do anything to him, he’d paint himself as the victim.”

“No pranking him, got it. Anything else?”

She winced, but responded.

“You’ve already done enough, so it troubles me to ask more of you. But if you can help and gather more ingredients from the forest? The coin I make out of selling them could come in handy. At the very least, if I become Village Head, I could use it to help Helmrest before it scrounges together enough coin to help itself.”

“When you become Village Head, Elia, not if.”

She smiled at him. They were nearly at her shop. Looking like she’d much prefer her bed than talking with the, now smaller crowd of potential customers, she turned to Jack.

“We’ll see what happens. I just hope the future doesn’t hold any more unpleasant surprises.”

That’ll be the day.

“You and me both, Elia. I’ll be off, I need to make sure I’m home before Mrk starts throwing another tantrum.” He laughed.

“One last thing, Jack. I… don’t know how, but you’re the only one I know that has so many Classes. Or who Leveled said Classes that quickly. If you can, you need to grow them. Even if they don’t seem useful. People respect Classes and you being Helmrest’s newfound hero would help us beat Mr. Winnow at his own game.”

“I don’t know about this whole ‘hero’ thing, but I’ll give it my best. See you later, Elia.” He said, walking off.

She waved at him, before going forward to tackle whatever orders the crowd had. As he left, he thought of what he had just learned. He knew Mr. Winnow wouldn’t let matters lie. He’d try to cheat and try to become Mayor, whatever it took.

If he does, I can just kiss my home goodbye. And I can’t abandon the villagers either.

Jack needed to become… more. Not stronger, or wealthier or smarter. All of those things would be appreciated, but he wasn’t sure of exactly what he needed. He just knew he had to grow. It was a novel feeling. He had inklings before, of the desire to be more than what he already was. But it was never a purpose. He had no memories and because of that, he could see no actual point in the future, no final destination that he wished for himself. Before this, he only wanted to protect Mrk, protect Lola and maybe eat nicer things.

It was odd. He had never had a desire to strive for things, to achieve a goal. Nothing really important to look forward too. But now that he was placed in adversity to an opponent, like the Winnows and in adversity to an undesired outcome, such as Helmrest becoming part of a kingdom, he finally found the wish to become better. It seems that as far as personalities go, Jack’s wasn’t one to strive for bigger and better ideals. He was the type of person to most be motivated by adversity. And he finally knew it too.

Guess it says something about me. Still, better to have an aim than to not.

Those were the thoughts that occupied his mind on his way back to the clearing. The fact that he was, as far as anyone around him knew, extremely proficient in both gaining and Leveling Classes and he had treated it like some form of amusement saddened him. He’d been just a fool, traipsing around the forest. He couldn’t afford to be that anymore.

“Jack.”

“SHIT!” he yelled, jumping back.

Without consciously realizing it, he had reached the clearing. Also without realizing it, Brom had reached him.

“I am sorry to frighten you.” The dwarf said, eyeing him stoically.

Though could it really be called stoic if the dwarf seemed to lack any apparent emotions?

“No, all good, Brom. Sorry, I was just lost in thought.”

“Yes. It happens to us all. I need to discuss with you.”

“Right. Look, buddy, I kind of get the feel that dwarf culture is a little different, but I just wanted to say, if this is about some form of showing respect, you don’t need to worry about it. You can just ask me what you want to know or tell me if you want my help.”

“I see.”

“As in, you can just blurt out what you want to say. No need for me to… give you permission, or anything else. No worries, alright?”

“…I will take that into consideration.”

Yet you still only speak in one sentence at a time.

Jack sighed internally, but refused to say anything else before Brom did. He just hoped that, in time, the dwarf would learn to speak more liberally. The fact that it took a few seconds before Brom opened his mouth again gave Jack little hope of it happening soon.

“I have gone into the forest, to hunt for game. The animals are… peculiar. Most times they are hidden. As if by magic. The ratling Mrk has said that you have magic. Is this your doing?”

That was a record number of words for him!

“Uh, no. Melena, the nymph who used to own this forest, placed a kind of magic on it. It both prevents most monsters from entering and hides animals from us. And from each other, I think, since she mentioned there aren’t any predators in her forest. But she left, so it will fade in time.”

“I see. Then… no meat?”

Jack laughed at the sincerity of the question. Brom expression mirrored his own, from some time ago.

“No, sorry buddy. We’ve been having the same problems. But it will change, in the future.”

“I understand. I have more to discuss with you.”

“Hold that thought! I have more to discuss with you too. And Mrk. How about we all have lunch and talk?”

“…Mrk has already shared food with me. I have nothing to repay you with.” He said, cautiously.

“Brom, not sure what you’ve heard, but that’s not how we do things over here. We share mostly anything. We help each other. As in, if you’re ever in want of anything, ask away, yeah?”

“Yes. That is… good.” He said, a small smile touching his lips.

“That’s the spirit! Now, where’s Mrk?”

“I believe he is in the forest.”

“Right. Could you go get him please? I’ll start the fire.”

Jack tended to the fire, while Brom went to fetch Mrk. He didn’t even need to use his little pyromaniac of a Skill. It became apparent, after much work with the Ember Caps, that sticks doused in their powder or their oil needed much leas heat to ignite. They burned hotter and faster too, though. Not to mention the fact that the fumes they gave off tended to make one’s eye water, if they stood to close.

He even had enough time to place a water-filled pot on the makeshift stand, over the fire and load it with mushrooms and potatoes, flavoring it with salt and a few spices. Jack knew that Mrk preferred to be the one playing cook, but time was of the essence in this scenario.

While he did this, he thought, though his mind ran in the same circles as it did during his trek back to the clearing. He didn’t have a plan, not exactly, but he had the beginning of one. The pot had already started to boil by the time the two returned.

“Jack. Brom says Jack needs Mrk?”

“Yup. I wanted to share a dinner with you two and talk some things out.”

“Mrk sees. Something happened? Is Jack upset?”

“A little. C’mon, take a seat.”

The ratling tensed, but took up the invitation. As did Brom. Jack went on to regale the two with what he’d found out. He told them of Mr. Winnow and his plans regarding Helmrest. As well as what he and Elia suspected would happen to them, if Mr. Winnow’s plan came to fruition. Mrk became calmer, after Jack told him the reason of his worry, but soon became riled up again, when he learned someone had the audacity of wanting to intrude on his ‘warren’. Brom himself was less interested in what happened to Helmrest, not that Jack could blame him, but was ruffled by the plans on their clearing.

At least, that was what Jack thought his continuous staring meant.

“So.” Jack said, after finishing his story. “I’ll share what I think could be done in a moment. But first, I wanted to talk to you two. Any thoughts?”

“Mrk not like this. But Mrk sees this as contest, between Elia and Winnow man. Stronger one gets the power. I only wants Winnow man not to win.”

“I don’t want him to win either, Mrk, but it may be that Elia doesn’t have enough pull to win on her own.”

“But… Mr. Winnow not liked by villagers, no?” Mrk asked. “Winnow man uses them. People know.”

“I… don’t know. I mean, I’ve seen that a lot of people dislike him, now more than ever, but it seems that ‘winner takes all’ is how they run things. If he wins again… I think the villagers will just accept that.”

“Mrk not understands that. Ratlings listen to ratling with power. But if new leader is cruel, ratlings flee. Or, kill new leader.” He shrugged.

“I agree.” Brom spoke up.

The sudden reply was unexpected enough to cause a moment of silence.

“You… do, Brom? Do dwarfs also act like this?”

“No. Not most. But I know of these ways. I agree to them. Could this man be removed?”

“…no. Not by force, I don’t think. At least, not without him causing any more visible harm. He has some Skills, which affect people directly. Makes them more likely to listen to him.”

“I see.” Brom said, nodding. “Rulers often do. Is he high Level?”

“I don’t know to be honest. I mean, his Skills didn’t work on the Nymph. They kind of worked on me, but I managed to shrug them off. I think other villagers can ignore them too, but it depends.”

“Hm. Then direct removal is unlikely to succeed.”

Jack was about to agree, when Brom spoke again.

“I do not know of Helmrest. Its affairs do not interest me. But you say and your friend seems to agree, that if this man was to win, he would interfere with this Refuge. Try to take it for himself, even if in the name of his village.”

“Yeah. Elia said so and I agree with her.”

“Then this Elia must win.”

“Yeah, that’s… actually what I wanted to talk to you two about. I want to help Elia. Actually, it looks like I need to help Elia. But I’m not yet sure how. I wanted to discuss it with you, to see if you have any other ideas.”

“We brings mushrooms to Elia? Mushrooms and ingredients from forest? She sells, makes coin. Good, no?” Mrk asked.

“That’s what I’ve thought of too. I mean, Elia said that more coin will help her. She could use it to hire more guards, pay for rebuilding buildings and tools for some villagers. Basically, show the people a taste of what she could really do to help Helmrest.”

“Then is good plan?”

“I don’t think it’s enough, buddy. I already let her have the coin she earned from the monsters, but Mr. Winnow made the five guards she used the coin to pay them with look like a drop in the bucket. Even if we let her have our ‘payment’ too, from what we gather for her, I don’t think it’s going to be enough.”

“Not enough. Not on its own. Mrk sees. But then, what? If Elia not make enough coin anyway… how do Mrk and Jack help?”

“I don’t know… Brom?”

The dwarf didn’t startle, but he did breathe a little heavier for a second. Jack guessed he wasn’t yet used to his opinion be requested in council.

That will have to change, Brom. You’re part of this Refuge too now.

“I… am not sure I understand it all. But. What does this Elia need, in order to win?”

“She needs people to choose her as the next Village Head.”

“I understood that. But what do the people need? What do they want from her?”

“I guess people just want to feel safe. After the latest monster attack, that seems to be what everyone is thinking of. Safety. And they want Helmrest to grow. I think… preferably without becoming part of another kingdom.”

“Growth. Coin will help that. I do not think what you said first is a mistake. If you can gather materials and she can sell them, that will help her. I understand she has Classes related to using those materials. That will help her too. She can grow more worthy by Leveling her Classes and people look up to those who are worthy. Coin will also help her grow the village. Your plan has merit.”

“Alright… good. But what about protection? I think people care a little more about that.”

“That is simple. This Refuge is protection. Offer her that.” He answered, simply.

“Brom, this Refuge was protection. The nymph who guarded it left. Her magic is already fading away.”

“That is true. Yet she has named you as her successor, correct?”

“She made me the owner of it, yeah. But I’m no nymph. I could maybe protect myself, but not many more others. Especially not an entire village.”

The dwarf thought for a few seconds, before responding.

“Hmm. My people know of the wisdom of nymphs.”

Yeah, I’m not so sure about that anymore.

“If she gave you this Refuge, it must have been for a reason. Regardless. It is now yours. Protect it. You have magic. Learn more. You have tools. Craft more. And you have Classes. Grow yourself until you are able to protect what has been given to you.”

For such a laconic dwarf, that was quite an inspiring speech. He didn’t stop there, either.

“Besides. You will need a stronger Refuge, regardless. You need to offer the villagers safety now. But you will need to offer security to the others who will come seeking your protection too.”

Jack was nodding, until he was not.

Wait.

“Others?”