Edward looked downright scary, looming over him.

  Charlie growled once and Edward backed off.

  In a calmer voice Edward asked again. “Where’s my axe?”

  James pushed himself upright.

  “I’m putting it to good use. I have a card that’s using it for the next four and a half hours. It’s really cool. It’s converting the pine wood into resources.”

  Edward pulled back. “Okay. As long as I get it back afterwards. You could have asked first though.” His arms were still folded but he was smiling again.

  System Notice – Knowledgebase Unlocked

  Note Added:

  Nothing happened.

  He got up.

  James hadn’t been overly careful with his Inventory. Five slots had been taken by food scraps for instance. He noted wryly that Charlie and Squire were clearing that problem up.

  “Uh… I don’t have any inventory space right now.”

  Edward walked over and picked up his backpack. “Yes, you do. Your back isn’t full.”

  James sighed. It was only for a couple of hours.

  He handed Edward the Ale, the mug having been placed upright by his Inventory. “Call it an apology for borrowing your axe longer than anticipated.”

  Edward drank the Ale and nodded with a look of appreciation.

  His spare clothes were repaired from the looks of things so he bundled that into his backpack. His dagger he gave to Edward for now who added it to his weapon duffle bag with a look of disgust, likely due to the low quality.

  He slung the backpack on his shoulders and carried the mace and bone shield himself.

  That left his crossbow…

  He looked up and found Edward already had a hand out, bag open, and a smile on his face.

  “Thanks, mate.”

  “No problem.”

  James took the time to change Charlie’s layout.

  When that was done they looked around for more iron-hide boars. After ten minutes they gave up and headed back to the road.

  From then on James permitted Squire to roam a little wider through the forest, with the instructions to lure whatever she found to them.

  He hoped she understood.

  Hours passed and so far, no real threats. There were creatures about, but he couldn’t bring himself to shoot at ones not looking for a fight. He could have used them in his deck for fodder, for sure, but preferred not to orphan more wildlife. He’d had enough killing for now, especially as it wasn’t a matter of immediate survival.

  Squire was really loving the Drake aspect. Occasionally she would return to his shoulder and show off. James was starting to realise that Squire did not want to give it up. He let her be, but would make a point of removing it when she slept.

  The path took one of its rare turns and there ahead of them was a large clearing. It looked like a regular stopping point as a wide swath of the forest had been cleared and pushed back. There was a ring of broken wagons in the middle. Not all of the cages were breached though.

  The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.

  James thought he saw a green wyvern in one before his attention snapped to focus on Janine rapidly approaching.

  “It would seem Joe made it back and put the quest out. I could only spare Phillip long enough to escort him and the other captives out.” she said as a form of greeting.

  “We’ve already fought off two bandit raids, mostly trying to nab some goods and flee.” She turned to James. “As I recall you have the Inventory skill, which will come in handy.”

  James nodded. “Most of the Bronze-ranked guild members have a form of that skill now too. I imagine there’s many more on the way. However, I suspect I will be best suited for any non-living larger items you may need moved.”

  Edward broke in. “Yeah James can fit most of a tree in his space now”

  James gave him a dirty look.

  He then grabbed Edward’s axe as the crafting job finished and the tool was released back to his inventory. “That reminds me,” James handed the Woodsman’s Axe back. “Thanks for that.”

  Edward made a point of inspecting the axe’s edge minutely. James didn’t know if he’d found something, or was just pedantic, because he got out a whetstone and started running it along the blade's edge.

  James eyed one of the storage wagons with broken wheels.

  “In fact — I think if we loaded that up I should be able to treat it as a single container and take the lot.” He pointed at the wagon bed he referred to.

  Janine flashed a smile.

  It was amazing how quickly the Silver-ranked members worked. Ten minutes later it was packed to the brim. James estimated about 1/10th of the goods were now stored in his Inventory.

  They did a proper circuit of the grounds while it was being loaded.

  The guild vault was nowhere to be seen so he guessed Janine also had a storage device hidden on her person.

  There were plenty of horses picketed as well.

  “Can you take some horses back with you as well?” She asked. “It should make your trip faster, while also doing us a favour.”

  He nodded.

  By now, James knew exactly what was in those cages. They were all fierce creatures best not released to the wild. There were signs of abuse too. It made James stomach churn… and his greed a little as well.

  After a few minutes of hesitation he approached Janine again. “Uhh… this is awkward, but what are you planning on doing with the caged wild creatures?”

  Janine gave him a sly look. “Planning on killing them for cards Commander?”

  “Well, maybe. If there’s a need. But I was more thinking of initiating a bond.. That wyvern looks mighty.”

  Janine frowned. “I wouldn't recommend it. I imagine that none of these creatures are fond of people and would likely attack the moment you let them free.”

  James sighed. “Then yes - kill and card them”

  “I’m glad you have that in you. But these are not for sale. We need to get them back for the Guild to decide.”

  “My crew and I will escort them back. Sarah’s already using her repair ability on cooldown to fix the wagons. We’ll be right. Can you deliver this to Joe or someone from the guild and return for more?” She glanced at the sky.

  James had an idea. “Can we buy three horses from you? Our choice though from the ones not yet spoken for?”

  He turned to Edward and Ken. “Can you ride?”

  “Yep, sure can. My family kept horses. Ken can too.”

  James was sure he could pick it up quickly.

  Janine agreed at one hundred gold per horse. That was apparently a massive discount, but given they could only purchase Darneath’s horses, not the guilds, that was reasonable.

  They spent the next half hour examining harnesses and choosing mounts.

  James appreciated how closely Edward inspected each horse. There were some apples in the supplies which they liberated for the task. Edward picked the biggest and strongest for himself, of course.

  He then summarily picked out two others and led them to them.

  “Hold your hand out like this,” Edward showed his open hand.

  James did so.

  Ken apparently did not need these instructions as he was already introducing himself to his horse.

  “Now let the horse smell you,” Edward said. “Keep calm and walk tall. Horses react to surety, presence, and most of all calm.”

  Squire picked this moment to let out a little squeak.

  “I’ll take away the Drake Aspect” he grumbled in Squire’s direction.

  Silence.

  He turned back to the patiently waiting horse.

  “Now, they will respect you more if you saddle them yourself. We don’t have the time right now but you will need to learn how. For now I want you to climb into the saddle.”

  James wasn’t completely oblivious about how to do that. He’d watched plenty of TV and movies.

  Given his enhanced stats he managed to mount gracefully enough. He knew he was supposed to move with the horse, with his heels pointed down. Reins needed to be loose until he was to pull left or right, so as to not pull at the bit. That was about all he knew.

  Edward shortened the stirrups to match his height. He also adjusted the reins in his hands.

  “Okay, now walk her around the wagons. Don’t get close to the forest.” Edward said.

  Ken was already on his way doing that so James decided to follow. He gave a swift kick to get his horse going and nearly fell off the saddle as he was jerked forwards.

  He tried, “Woah, woah,” but it did not work. James tried a mental command, but there was no bond, or card in place. He found his seat again and then pulled back on the reins. Not a great start.

  It was potentially so bad that he still hadn’t gotten a bond prompt from the system. He was surprised as other than dogs perhaps, he thought horses would be the quickest to bond.

  He completed his first circle back to Edward.

  Edward clapped his hands. “Good start! Now give her an apple so she knows there’s a reward for carrying you.”

  James dismounted, again following Ken’s example, still holding the reins. He reached out and accepted the apple from Edward’s hand, then held it out on open palm for her to eat.

  The horse's lips felt dry against his palm, but it was careful not to eat his hand.

  “Now you need to name her.” Edward prompted. “This here is Browny”

  James coughed in surprise.

  Edward laughed. “The look on your face! His name is James. Ha, got you again. His real name is Rusty”

  James looked closely at his new friend. She had a white splotch on her mane that resembled a cloud. His mind geeked out.

  “I’ll call you Nimbus.”

  That’s when the prompt he’d been half-expecting finally appeared.

  System Prompt: Initiate Bond?

  Trait Activated – Wait—NO!

  Companion Acquired – Nimbus (Common Horse)

  Aspects: Beast, Horse.

  Bond Progress Increased – Nimbus: +1%

  He waited with bated breath, but nothing happened.