Robin
"Yeah, we're taking him out of the hospital today. If the bastard is tough enough to survive his wounds then he'll be awake today. We'll get out payment for helping him, and I have the perfect place to drop him off at where he wont be messed with."
Clara
_Almann thanks the server for the meal and pays for his portion. He gathers his things and begins to go towards the door._
Jacob
*Ralki was stilll eating food before she realized they needed to go now,* "Sorry, one second!" *Ralki pays the server and runs out the door.*
Clara
_Almann makes his way back to the hospital and opens the door. He walks over to the cot of the old man, with the doctor in tow._

_The doctor says he hasn't woken up yet, and that he still needs a few days of rest._

_Almann simply shrugs the doctor off, and slings the old man over his left shoulder. The old doctor attempts to stop him by tugging on his left sleeve._

"What, are you mad? He's still not fully healed yet you brute! Put my patient down you imbecile!"

Almann responds by putting a dagger at his throat.

_Almann simply walks out of the infirmary. The old doctor flings a coin purse at the back of his head. It's the 6 gold in payment. The doctor yells curses as Almann walks away with the coin purse in his pocket._

_He whistles as he makes his way back to the wagon._
Jacob
*Damn, what a rude doctor. The doctors Ralki meets with are so much more nicer, they even let her leave with a mutilated leg! Anyways, Ralki doesn't really care if Almann takes the money or not* "So, how's he doing? He doesn't look much better, except he's no longer bleeding than anyone should realistically bleed."
Robin
"He'll wake up soon enough. In the meantime he'll have to learn how to hear instead of feel and see. I know the perfect place for this."
Clara
_Almann gently puts down the old man in wagon and gets the rest of the wagon ready for departure._
Robin
"Some doctors are more serious than others. If word gets out he let a patient go free without him recovering people will think he is a bad doctor. Good thing we'll be going a bit ways away from here."
Clara
_In truth Almann didn't blame the old man. He simply needed him to stay in his place and not cause a commotion. The road to recovery is going to be long and hard for this man. He needs to make him understand that, and give him instructions on what to do next._
Robin
"I suppose I'll let you know now what I plan to do. We're going to drop him off in a field, secluded, with the nearest person being this old couple I know. I'll ask them to check out on him every so often to make sure he's fed as has water.

He will stay out in the field, until he is able to pick out the sound of a singular length of grass waving in the wind he will not be permitted to leave. He wont be able to leave. It's the same sort of technique I used when I was blinded in one eye."

"The goal is to make his hearing substantially better than it was. It takes some time and complete silence in meditation but seeing as he isn't dead from those wounds, he'll do fine."
Jacob
"Personally I'd teach him how to smell better" *Ralki does not realize how rediculous that sounds. Smell better? How is that supposed to help? It's not like everyone had the capability to have the ability to smell for miles.*
Robin
"That may come naturally too., seeing as he's also lost his arms. All I know for now is to train one's hearing for certain sounds at certain distances."
Jacob
"By the way, since we're talking about learning and training, that thing you said about mixing metal-whatever you call it with ceramics gave me an idea. What if I could improve my already great magic to include metals! I think it's rather possible, though I'd probably have to start with softer metals." *Ralki wasn't the best at coming up with her own ideas, but Almann gave her a goal she thinks she could get to rather easily.*
Robin
"If you think you can do it, I think you can do it. Like most things it'll take a bit of time, but you should get the hang of it considering how good you are as an artisan. Soft metals like tin, copper, then to bronze of course, and then you can go up to irons and steels. From there you can then go into precious metals. Since they cost a bit more you'd need to refine the craft before attempting large amounts of precious metal artisan crafts."

"I think personally I'll suspend my travelling for a bit and spend some time on the front lines between the beastkin tribes and the elven domains."
Clara
_He tosses her a bronze ring. It seems to give off a warm glow._
Robin
"This will glow warmer and brighter near someone who can use bronze magic. I don't know of anyone else who can besides myself. If it glows around the beastkin tribes or in New Salvainia, don't be afraid to follow it and catch up with me. We'll sit down and catch up yeah?"
Jacob
"Of course! I hope you will have a good time in the frontlines, see you sometime in the future! So, why does this ring glow, anyways?" *Ralki is genuinely confused, was it just a very minor magic?*
Robin
"Basic sensor magic. I insert a type of magic into the forging with those rune inscriptions there, and it glows whenever that type of magic is near. It's all I can't for regular enchantments though, and it took time with a manual."

"It's nothing special, but if you learn how to do it some people find it very useful."
Jacob
"Do they? Eh, I'll probably have my hands full with this improving my greatest magic... I suppose I will see you again, sometime. I shouldn't delay you, if you're busy."
Clara
_The wagon stops some time later. Almann says he'll go into the farmhouse alone. He spends about half an hour in there and exits with an elderly man. He wears a hood, seemingly to hide his ears..._

_Almann takes the old man in the wagon, and hands the other old man a letter with detailed instructions on what to tell the other man if he wakes up. The older man nods and follows Almann as he makes his way to the field. He gently plops down the old man (Kohm) in the field._

_He comes back to the wagon._

**The Letter Reads:**

_Instructions for improved reading of an anonymous old macen:_

_He is to stay in the field until he can hear a blade of grass from 100 m away swaying in the wind. Give him food and water daily, check his wounds and make sure he is, of course, alive._

_The instructions for enhanced hearing are as follows:_

_1. Do not move under any circumstance. Do not breath through your nose, and attempt to disconnect the rest of your senses from the world._
_2. Focus on what you hear. What is it? Can you pinpoint it? For how long can you concentrate on sounds?_
_3. All of this should be done while you are sitting with slow and deep breaths. Part of advanced hearing is being able to slow or drown your heartbeat to a minimum so it doesn't interfere with your ears. Standing while listening comes later._
_4. Learn to listen while you sleep. Don't want to get eaten yeah?_

_Test:_

_Stand 100m away and wisper a word. If he guesses the correct word, then do a sentence. If he guesses the correct sentence. Speak a paragraph._

_If he completes these things he should be fine on his own. His ears will be his arms and eyes._

_Almann kicks the wagon into gear, and they make their way back towards New Salvainia. He turns to Ralki._
Robin
"Ever been to the capital?"
Jacob
"I couldn't say I have or have not, mostly because I don't remember. I mean, probably, I have. But it's not an experience I'd remember, y'know?" *Ralki had not visited the capital in a while, maybe to shop. That's right! She shopped in the capital, but honestly was that even important enough to care about.*
Robin
"Well, I'll show you around once we get there, hopefully we'll make this memorable yeah? After that I plan to make my way to the areas where there is mercenary work around the empire."
Jacob
*Ralki does a thumbs up in a more dramatic way than usual, but other than that she's pretty normal. She wonders what it looks like around there, though she had been there before.* "Alright! Wait, why are we going to the capital?"
Robin
"My shop is there, I plan to pack my things for the long haul."
Clara
_It takes a few hours overnight, but they finally reach the capital. They hail the guards, Almann shows his merchant talisman, and enters the capital. It doesn't take long for him to find a spot to park the wagon. The city is absolutely enormous._

_Spires of great towards, inner walls defending garrisons and richer districts, people covered in rags and fine silks roam the streets and make conversation with the stalls and shops. As they pass through the respective districts there are distinct smells and sounds._

_The poorer districts of the capital smell quite awful. Foul odors of all kinds mostly come from the streets, hedon districts and streets, as Almann calls them, are full of brothels and taverns. There are plenty of shady figures who lurk into the alleyways and sly snake oil salesmen begging for them to stop for a second to take a look at their counterfeit goods._

_As they pass through the middle and artisan districts there is a distinct difference. It is not only lively, but prosperous. The smell of exotic oils, sweat, smoke, burning wood and coal, perfumes, and numerous other things fill the air around the middle districts. The sounds of pounding metal, shouting merchants, and wagons traversing the busy streets occupy the ears of Almann and Ralki. Almann lives in this district, it is lively and great most days, with all sorts of people speaking tongues from around the world selling their wares here. He lives in the adjacent middle district from this one though._

_Normally a merchant wouldn't be able to pass through the high/imperial districts oft he capital. Almann had "Special" Privileges given some of his connections among the richer people of the capital. He'd been out an about in this area for about 8 years after all. The streets were completely different. The cobbles were shockingly clean, with pairs of nobles and richer merchants out and about in the streets. It was also shockingly quiet. There wasn't a lot of traffic here because, simply put, these districts caters to only a few thousand people. The smell of fine cheeses, baked goods, and rich perfumes fill the streets at the many higher artisan shops here. Many of the richer folk whisper and raise their eyebrows at the two, but immediately quiet themselves seeing the granite merchant talisman flashed around Almann's neck. It didn't take them too long to pass through here._

_Eventually Almann finds the local wagon renter and shores up the the wagon. He unhooks the horses and loads the rest of the goods onto the back of the rounceys._
Robin
"We should make our way to my shop, we can clean up there, tie up the horses and take inventory. Feel free to stay for as long as you'd like."
Jacob
"So, you live here? Well, I mean, probably not *Live* But rather have this as a base of operations. I assume you travel quite a bit as a part of your job. Honestly, it's pretty great here, thanks for letting me stay at your shop" *Ralki wasn't lying, she was impressed. She hadn't seen such a large cluster of good artisians in one area ever before.*
Robin
"No problem, I'll be away for a bit anyways. You should find some people in the middle districts who are willing to help you figure out how to make your mixed metal goods."
Clara
_Almann was restless. He wanted to get into some action. He's starting to understand more and more than what he's looking for isn't a quiet life. That will come later. He wants to do something._
Jacob
"Seeya!" *Now Ralki is now party crashing in Almann's home. But of course she won't do nothing with this, she had already made an image in her mind to as how her metal magic could work! She just needed a little time.*
Clara
_Almann gets the things he needs and sets off to find work. He waves as he makes his way towards the front gate of the capital._