***
Solania was not quite sure how to handle her Husband. Indeed, ever since they had been wed, she felt his actions were far more outrageous than before. In her long life, few had ever been so…close to her. Yet Isaac seemed to find it completely normal to pat her neck, rub her head, and other various actions that she had never experienced. It was most disconcerting, especially because she could never foresee what might cause such a reaction from him.
It's not as though I hate it, but…still, he could show some restraint, some class! I am not just a friendly unicorn to be petted at his leisure! I am the Goddess of Purity! He should make sure his actions do not displace my mane!
Solania shook him off, feeling embarrassed, "A-Ahem, As I said, you need not be so concerned. Though it must seem like a lot to you now, Husband, I am not so petty a Goddess as to be bothered. In fact, as we have talked about before, I would like more prayers…"
Perhaps that was too much for a mortal to handle…I should have asked my siblings if they had ever shared prayers with their chosen before.
Isaac chuckled lightly, "Oh, I am well aware of your wishes, Solania. Rest assured, I will do my utmost when the time comes."
Solania realized that, in her fluster, she had almost forgotten the point of this exercise. She answered her Chief High Priestesses prayer and told her to come back.
She then nodded regally and said, "Excellent to hear because the time has come."
Isaac looked at her, his clear green eyes bright with interest, "Really? I was starting to wonder if you were just going to keep me here telling you stories until I ran out."
She held herself back from showing shock.
How did he figure that out?! If there wasn't such a confluence of problems coming up recently…
As always, her Husband seemed capable of seeing through her intentions. It would be frustrating if he didn't usually use his insight to do what she wanted immediately.
"Y-yes, well, regardless of your thoughts on the matter, the time has come!" She said, trying to regain the flow of the conversation.
Isaac smiled easily and asked, "Well then, what exactly will you have me do?
Solania collected herself and stated, carefully picking her words,
"I have been receiving many concerning prayers recently, all concentrated to the west of here. Truly, there were not many specifics, but great suffering and fear was involved in almost every case."
Isaac thought for a moment, "Hmm, likely in the city of Veris then. Its the closest city to the west of here with a significant population."
Solania, not having much knowledge about the world outside of her grove, just vaguely nodded in agreement, assuming he was right.
"Regardless of its origin, there is no doubt that this is a serious problem. If it truly is a force with the strength to elicit such reactions, then I believe you should go and subdue it in my name. I will not have some malevolent force targeting my precious followers." She said, pleased with how decisive her voice sounded.
At this moment, her Chief High Priestess joined them, bowing, "My Goddess, I hope my prayers were to your satisfaction?"
Solania ignored her question and asked one of her own, "Have you gathered the equipment my Husband requested?"
***
Isaac was surprised; he had only requested a selection of equipment 2 months ago.
I suppose this is what they call the VIP treatment.
Leksha gave Solania a complicated look, "Indeed, but...well, your Eminence, are you truly satisfied with his decisions? I believe much of what he wanted is beneath his station..."
Before Solania could say anything, Isaac spoke up with a sigh, "Master Leksha, please. I have explained this to you before. If I were to go out in gear costing hundreds, if not thousands, of crowns, I would just be painting a target on my back. Be that from brigands or nobles."
There is no way I'm ready for any kind of political games at this point. I can only imagine some charismatic manipulator getting me, and thus Solania, into some exclusivity pact or something.
He motioned to Solania, " It's the same reason I have been asking my wife to hold off on announcing my existence and sending an image of my appearance to all of her followers. You have all admitted to me that you don't have a deep understanding of the politics of the world right now. I would rather stay... relatively unknown as long as possible."
Leksha could only reluctantly nod at his explanation, "Yes, forgive me if I seem lacking in consideration. I simply wish to do my utmost for my Goddess' Blessed Husband. I will do better."
Isaac waved it off, saying, "It's fine. Really it is. Now can I see them?"
She quickly went off and returned soon after with one of the other High Priestesses named Resna, carrying a trunk embossed with silver ornamentation. They laid it down in front of him and opened it, revealing a selection of items.
First of all, Isaac noticed a fine black cloak. Knowing that Haven was currently somewhere between the 15th and 18th centuries in Earth technology, such a thing was clearly far more valuable than the "middle-class traveler" look he was going for. He picked it up, and when fully unraveled, it revealed a beautiful silver stitching along its back, a glimmering symbol of the Goddess of Purity emblazed in all its glory against the expensive black material.
He gave Leksha an even look, "Did you truly understand?"
She stood her ground fiercely, "No matter what…You must have this! If you ever reveal your identity, it is unacceptable not to have this much!"
Isaac sighed, conceding the point as Solania's eyes sparkled, looking at the cloak. Obviously, she liked it.
At least a cloak isn't too hard to hide in a bag.
The rest of the chest was within his specifications. A good set of clothes, not too fine, but with enough layers to keep him looking middle class in the eyes of most people, along with a well-made pair of leather boots cuffed below the knee. A belt with leather pouches, filled with some travel necessities like flint and steel and compass, sat on a navy-colored knee-length buttoned coat.
His hopes were truly answered when he saw the gray tricorn hat.
Ah, something about this feels close to my heart. I wonder where my fashion sense comes from…
There was also a decent Elven Blade. He had fought pretty hard to get a blunt pommel as opposed to the twisted blades all the Elven Priestesses had on theirs. It was even harder not to get one made out of silver, but he had gotten a nice steel blade with a cupped hilt, just as he wanted.
Sitting in its own wooden box was something Isaac had been very curious to see. Inside, he found a primitive-looking pistol. Taking the obtusely angled wooden grip ending in hand, Isaac inspected the mechanism. First, making sure it was clear, with no paper, powder, or ball, he worked the mechanism and trigger a few times.
Not a flintlock. No match either. Given the spanner in the box, hmm, what was it called…Wheellock? That seems right.
The mechanism was cumbersome, but it was at least far less impacted by weather conditions
than something like a matchlock. This was a basic model in its design, clearly designed for military use, which made sense.
In Haven's history, firearms were first developed around 100 years ago in a Roden-majority kingdom in the northern part of this continent. All he had learned was an advancement made by Veron's Chosen was responsible for other nations developing a more advanced weapon that assisted them in winning the war and stopping some kind of genocidal campaign.
I wonder if wheellocks are enough to turn the tide. Maybe with magic, they could halt the use of firearms by their enemies if they created a magical storm. Hmmm...
This led to a large number of these mass-produced wheellock weapons spreading around the continent over the last century. The box had everything he needed for the operation and cleaning of the pistol, alongside 15 rounds (including powder and paper). Considering this was a single-shot weapon that would take an experienced operator 30 seconds at least to reload, this was an opener or a finisher in a real brawl.
Unless I get dragged into some military conflict in the near future…Ill just develop a far more dangerous weapon if that happens.
Certainly, Isaac had considered doing that already once he had heard about the primitive state of firearms in this world. A nice temporary advantage, but he wasn't one to underestimate humans, or any intelligent species for that matter.
If they made it this far alone, they could figure it out. I'm not looking to jump technology a hundred years right now.
However, it was indeed possible that there was another reincarnator here. But if that was the case, why was the world still sitting at this tech level?
At the bottom of the chest was a decently made leather bag with a set of simple iron and wood cookware inside, a plain bedroll with some treated skins for added warmth, and a tent cloth. Two small knives and an Elven Parrying Dagger rounded out the set.
Overall, it was what someone who recently became middle class due to recent luck in beast-hunting might have purchased. Or so he hoped; Isaac wasn't filled with optimism that these shut-ins knew enough about the world outside of this to grove to make that call accurately.
After trying on the clothes to check the fit and giving the gear a thorough inspection, he considered what he had.
Perfect.