And so, my first night in Azure Tide finally concluded without a hitch. It wasn't all bad; the bed was comfortable, the room ran cool, and the lavender patchouli incense Dai Yuhan burned throughout the palace lulled me to sleep mere moments after I read the Data Pack explaining that she was the getaway driver in Fang Leung's robbery of the goddamn Yanlin Clan! All things considered, I slept well. Things only started to get uncomfortable when it was time to begin my morning routine.
Not to make things weird, but dealing with… uh, morning bloodflow was not pleasant, especially considering it was someone else's garden snake I was dealing with. Having to angle someone else's meat rod towards a toilet bowl, taking a shit out of someone else's behind, then having to thoroughly wash someone else's ass-naked body was not how I wanted to spend my morning. I suppose it wasn't reasonable to swap back to my body only in the mornings, but still. My day wasn't off to the greatest start.
After spending an hour in my room playing out my apology to the townspeople in my head, I left the palace. Azurine and Claude went on ahead to gather supplies for the Northern Gate Project, and Dai Yuhan was trailing a ways behind me as I took in the surroundings. Normally, I'd appreciate a silent morning walk, but considering the angry looks and loud whispers of the townspeople around me, I could've used a distraction.
"What were their mornings like, I wonder?"
I'd woken up in a lavish palace with multiple bathrooms, multiple pool-sized hot tubs, a throne room, a massive dining room, and a spacious courtyard. Just to walk out into a town with hardly any greenery, dirt walkways and gravel "roads", dilapidated stone and brick houses, and vacant storefronts. I'd been torn over the decision to wear either the fancy white robes with the gold accents, or the expensive-looking black ones with the silver accents that made me look like a Jedi–all while my townspeople wore rags and tattered sheets. It was impossible to know how Fang Leung felt when he witnessed this sight, but I knew how I felt:
Guilty.
Guilt, disgust, and remorse played in my mind as I looked over Azure Tide. How much had these people been through, just for me to get in their faces and call them weak? The fact that they were still standing despite last night's attack and the countless horrific nights they must've survived in the Nameless Frontier was a testament to their relentless strength. So many of them wore their histories clear on their faces, and I'd been the asshole who shit on them for it. Adrenaline and temper be damned, that wasn't right.
"H-hey," I shouted. There'd already been a decent crowd of people walking about. They stopped when I called out to them; some flinched, which sent another pang of guilt through me, and others bowed while barely hiding eye-rolls. Regardless, a small group eventually surrounded me, waiting for my next words. Dai Yuhan stood next to me, but I ushered her to stand with the crowd.
"Sorry for… well, calling you guys… 'bitches'." I managed to get out. Public speaking was never my thing, but as the leader of Azure Tide, I needed to make it my thing. "I was angry and confused last night, and I took that anger and confusion out on you all. You guys didn't deserve that."
The crowd of people was starting to grow. I had no clue how many people lived in Azure Tide, but if you told me a quarter of the townspeople were here now, I'd believe you. As the crowd grew and conversed among themselves, a woman spoke up.
"T-this one is humbled by your words, Young Master. None of us thinks you have… sinned against us! Ever…!"
Despite the words themselves, the way in which she said them stuck with me. She stammered, her voice quivered, and she was sweating bullets. More people joined her, echoing similar sentiments, and for the first time, I found myself getting angry with Fang Leung. What had he done to make the people act like this? They'd likely only joined the mob last night because of their adrenaline, and now that it was gone, they saw me only as the man who was known to assault those who angered him.
"Listen," I said, stopping them from continuing their unwarranted praise of me. Despite them not being my actions, I needed to take accountability for Fang Leung. As far as they were concerned, I was him, so it made no difference. "My actions led to us getting invaded. I put your lives in danger, and I didn't consider your feelings on the matter." I bowed at the waist. "I've asked for your forgiveness, and now I'm asking for your honesty. I am not perfect. I made mistakes, and I will make more mistakes in the future. But if this city is going to thrive, I need you all to hold me accountable when I f–... mess up. That's the only way I can make this place better. I need to be better, and I need you to expect better of me, so that all of us can benefit from my growth." I sank down to my knees and pressed my head into the dirt, drawing gasps from the crowd. "This one apologizes for his sins against you. He promises to dedicate himself to your safety and well-being for the rest of his life."
+500 Charisma
+100 Diplomacy
I maintained my bow as I did my best to hide my smile, waiting for someone to say something to me. "Kowtowing" wasn't what I'd planned to do today, but after skimming through some Data Packs on Yinchao customs, I learned that it was the best way to show the people how sincere I was.
"W-we… we're exposed," A man said from within the crowd. I finally stood, trying not to shit myself from the number of people who were here now, and waited for him to finish speaking. "The Northern Gate is still destroyed. If it isn't fixed by tonight, we might get overrun by Igrin."
"My wife and butler are there now, and we're going to have it completely repaired by tonight."
And just like that, the dam broke.
"We need food!"
"There aren't any more Spirit Herbs in the city!"
"Can we get new clothes?"
"We're broke!"
"That attack last night was so sudden. I didn't consider how it might've affected you, too."
"Neither did I!"
Request after request came piling in, paired with apologies for participation in last night's mob. I certainly wasn't expecting that, but it still felt good to hear. That being said, I'd just signed myself up to be the town's errand boy for the next goddamn week, but if it meant turning this place around, I'd be anything. Still, I was only one man, and unlike Dai Yuhan, I couldn't be in multiple places at the same time.
But that wasn't what the people wanted from me. They wanted to know that I would do that for them. That they could sleep soundly knowing I was looking out for them. And, well, I wanted that for them, too.
"Alright!" I called to the crowd. I gestured Dai Yuhan, who'd been standing there with an expression of practiced calm. "Give all of your requests to my handmaiden. She'll organize them, and we'll get to each of them as we can, alright? I really need to get to that wall if I'm going to finish before sundown."
Dai Yuhan, for the first time, gave me a dirty look as I snuck away from the crowd. I mouthed an apology, waved, and ducked off just as she'd been swallowed by the sea of people.
***
Things moved pretty quickly from that point on. When I arrived at the Northern Gate, Azurine and Claude had already gotten started with repairs to the wall. The building process was actually fairly simple, too. Claude laid down some aura-infused mortar, I laid the bricks, and Azurine made sure I always had a brick in my hand. We had a little over 14 hours left to finish this, but at the pace we were going, we'd probably be done within eight, thanks to the rhythm we'd fallen into.
"So, I apologized to the townspeople. They seemed to take it pretty well if you can believe it."
"Glad to hear that, Gio. Did you see the man you got into it with?" Claude asked.
I shook my head. "Nope. Kinda glad I didn't, either."
"That's alright. I know him from the bar. His name's Harold. I'll talk to him about it next time I see him."
We continued to talk as we built. Most notably, about what the next steps for Azure Tide even were. Each time this conversation got brought up, the same three general talking points were repeated: Money, food, and safety. The people here are capable hunters, but the only edible animals near here were possum and pigeons. There were also monkeys, but the point still stood—there was no real food save for the ducks and shrimp Fang Leung stole from the Yanlin. Regarding safety, Azurine made the point that it was impossible to create any sort of army or defense force when the people who would be fighting in it are currently starving, and the one–me–who would be paying them didn't have much money either. Even if we did have the money, we'd need the time to train the Foundation and Mystic citizens of Azure Tide willing to fight, and who knew how long that'd take!
"You know, if things get really bad, I can make us money. I know how to make a dollar."
Azurine gave me a confused look. "A dollar?"
"Yeah. Like, money?"
"Our currency is gold. Gold coins, specifically."
"Whatever. I know how to make those."
"And how is that?"
"I mean… well…" I paused. Now that I thought about it, this wasn't an option at all. But I already brought it up, and it was too late to back down. "I… uh… used to sell drugs when I was fifteen. I made a ton of money doing that, so I mean…"
Azurine gave me an incredulous look. "Selling narcotics? At fifteen?"
I felt my cheeks heat as I looked away from her. "Hey! Gangsters don't follow labor laws! Besides, I was really good at it. I bought myself a PlayStation and all the best clothes like that. I never missed a Jordan release unless it was for the ugly ones like the 2s or 14s. Plus, I paid for my apartment with that money."
"The apartment that you died in."
"The apartment I died walking back to."
"I am not going to align myself with a narcotic-selling Clan Leader. If you're so good at making money, think up ways to sell stuff that won't get us all raided by the Ban Clan and sent to Oblitus!"
"I'm sure I can think of something." I paused, giving her a conspiratorial glance. "I'm just saying. Some of those Data Packs had titles involving 'Refined Pills' and I'm pretty sure I've made a few grand selling those back on–"
"Giovanni!"
I laughed. "Just putting that out there."
"That was our longest conversation. I think we're making progress!"
Time seemed to fly as we fell deeper and deeper into rhythm. When we started, there was a gap in the wall wide enough to fit a fleet of F-150s side by side through. Now, it was barely enough to fit one. The sun was starting to set, and the townspeople were walking about, whispering about how surprised they were to see me outside fixing the wall like I said I would. Beside me, Azurine and Claude were starting to slow down. I had as well, but the looming threat of Quest Failure kept me from giving in to my hunger and weariness. That being said, the Quest was mine, not theirs.
"You know, you guys don't have to work on this with me. I can finish this up myself."
"Don't worry about it, Gio. We'll be done here in an hour." Claude said.
"And I can finish it myself in two–and that's with me taking my time. I appreciate you guys helping, but please. Let me finish this myself."
My intentions were dual-purpose. I wasn't lying when I said I didn't want to burden them with this, but I also just wanted some alone time. Sure, I had the morning to myself, but between planning for the town apology and getting acclimated with the reality that this wasn't my body, I hadn't yet taken the time to just… let all of this sink in. Everything really had moved so quickly, and now that the opportunity to be in my own head for a little while stared me in the face, I knew that I needed to take it before I got dragged into something else.
"So be it," Claude allowed.
With that, he and Azurine stepped away from the wall, leaving the wheelbarrow of bricks and buckets of mortar beside me. Claude nodded as he handed me his trowel. "I'll have Azurine come get you in two hours. Does that work?"
I turned to the girl who gave Claude an "are you seriously asking me to do it" look.
"So much for progress…"
"Yeah," I said. "Thanks. If I finish early, I'll just pop back in the palace myself."