A Guide to Kingdom Building

Tarsuria, Year of Severus, 18, I.R., the 60th day of Spring, Broken Springs

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The night breeze was far warmer than it was yesterday. Nullus woke up sweating and breathing heavily as his head pounded from the nightmare he woke up to. He stood up and drank water directly from the earthen jug he stored just beside his bed.

This wasn't the first time this had occurred either. Nullus has been dreaming the same dream more than he could count. The dark water smashing against him, the glowing eyes of the serpent showing beneath the water, the dark tunnels and bat-like monsters he encountered returned to him every single night. But that wasn't where the nightmare was. The nightmare came in the form of his comrades slowly being killed and devoured in a thousand ways he had lost count of them. Just this night, he dreamt how the dwarf and beastman got torn to pieces by giant serpents they fought inside the cave.

He and the elf watched in horror as the serpents gobbled up their comrades' dead carcasses, all the while their dead eyes met with his, asking him questions about why he wasn't able to save them. He usually woke up every time they would come to ask the question, and it frustrated him.

Up until now, he still wasn't sure what happened to them after that fateful night three years ago. All he recalled was the aftermath of waking up by the edge of the river, cold and alone with pieces of a broken boat surrounding him. He could no longer recall anything before that except the night they managed to escape the camp.

He heard a loud thud from his makeshift drawer; something fell to the floor. He stood up and saw the glowing sword unraveled from its linen cover. The sword glowed the same pale, blue light. He picked it up and felt it pulsating as if it was calling to him. He immediately wrapped the sword and hid it back inside the drawer, buried in mounds of torn clothing and unused linens.

He should've thrown that weapon out when he had the chance, but something inside him was stopping him from doing it. A gut feeling that up until now he couldn't understand himself. It felt like the blade was speaking to him, begging him to let it stay by his side. Maybe it was all in his mind and the logical explanation for it was that he never had the heart to throw the damned thing.

He laid back on his straw bed recalling the good times he had with his missing comrades, wishing and hoping that they're still alive, wherever they might've been. He closed his eyes once again but not before seeing a familiar glow from outside his window. He knew who it was but chose to ignore it. After all the things that happened to him, the last thing he wanted was some persuasion from a moon goddess who now sits high and mighty in the heavens.

Nullus closed his eyes and went back to sleep a dreamless sleep; a peaceful sleep he wished he could have every single night.

Morning came once again. Nullus sat up from his bed earlier than the damned rooster could crow. He opened his window and gazed at the rising sun slowly breaking the dark veil of the night sky. Just a little above it, were the two moons constantly competing for its existence in the sky. So far, the bigger one was winning, but Oyue's moon shone ever brighter as the years gone by and was slowly moving its opposite direction of the main moon.

Nullus spat at the sight of Oyue's moon. Up until now, he still hated the goddess and her kin. He had a lot of reasons for that, mainly because he had worked with gods more than a hundred lifetimes before and knew how selfish and self-absorbed their kind were.

Squeakers bobbed his cowlick on the window a few moments after breakfast. The young plump kid was excited to greet him as he readied for the day. The child was excited with what he told the alderman last night about how the melon was supposed to be eaten, apparently, the child couldn't wait to taste such succulent fruit.

They went into the square where the alderman and the rest of the town people waited for him eagerly.

"Finally, you have arrived!" Alderman Hostea greeted him with excitement written all over his face.

He bowed to the old man and smiled as he caught a glimpse of the watermelons' shiny skin glistened in the sun. He picked one up, placed it near his ear and knocked on it. After hearing the blunt, yet full sound of the melon, he nodded and smiled.

"This one is ripe already!" He declared.

The townspeople whispered to each other. They weren't sure how to react to what Nullus had just said, after all this would be the first time, they would be tasting the fruit out. He let them watch as he cut the fruit into halves, then quarters, then into eighths.

The townspeople gasped as they saw the red fruit glistened under the sun. He took a slice and ate it for himself. He smiled as the sweet, refreshing taste of the melon filled his mouth. He offered one to the alderman who never hesitated to grab a slice.

Alderman Hostea bit a large chunk of the melon, the old man's eyes glowed and teared up as he consumed the fruit.

"It so sweet!!!" He exclaimed. "I-is this what you want us to sell in the city?" He asked wiping the tears off his face.

"Yes, and there's so much more." Nullus said.

He then took the rinds and showed them how to make it into yeast.

"Yeast?" A townsfolk asked. "What do you need that for?"

Nullus smiled. "Two things, better bread and fine wine!"

"Wine?!" The Alderman reacted. "But we don't have grapes! And even if we do, we can't compete with the lush valleys of the Northern Cities."

"Alderman Hostea who says about grapes?" Nullus smiled as he patted the old man's shoulder. "We are using watermelon and get it on the market!"

His comment made the townspeople whispering. Was it even possible?

"We can't go on like this!" Nullus said. "We can't just farm in the warmer parts of the year and die in starvation during the colder seasons! We have to find a way to earn a coin in those cold days and get some warm food on our table! I believe this would be our best step. Believe me, we can do this!"

Alderman Hostea looked at Nullus with hope in his eyes. "If you say so, Nullus. Then, please teach us."

Nullus nodded and showed them the process. He began by placing water in a small jug then place some soured wine vinegar into the water and a few cups of crushed watermelon then covered it. He then told the people to stir it every couple of days and check for bubbles.

"Would that be bad if there'll be bubbles?" A townsman asked.

"No, that means its growing good. Just make sure to put it in the dark, away from direct sunlight." He added.

The townspeople quickly took out their own containers and repeated the process. It became hectic following that morning's demonstration. While the others were making yeast, some of them were sorting melons for the market for the next morning.

The watermelon was a new product they wanted to introduce to the bigger towns and thus, they had to make sure that they sell the best quality of fruits they could offer. The day ended with everyone sweaty and exhausted, sorting the melons and placing them into the carts for tomorrow's market in the next town of Lucresium.

Night came and everyone went back to their houses, that included Nullus. As he arrived to his house, he noticed a pale blue glow through his window. He immediately hurried, worried that his cover might be blown because of the strange glow inside his house.

He rushed into his house and opened his door, only to find out a familiar face sitting by his bed.

"How long has it been since I saw you last, Adlaw-on? Or is it Nullus now?" She spoke in her sweet, gentle voice.

"O-oyue…you're not welcome here!" He spat as his sword flew into his hand.