9.39 Chapter Summary and Thoughts9.39 Chapter Summary and Thoughts
This was a pretty nice, calm chapter for the most part. Erin wakes up at the inn, works out with Ulvama (who emphasizes the need for combat readiness, potentially more foreshadowing towards Erin being more of a fighter), then gets a nice bath drawn by the Antinium. There’s a lot of notes on how Erin is much more of a supervisor of the inn now as opposed to doing the actual work. I wonder if this is influenced by Pirateaba just rewriting Volume 1 and all the hard work Erin put in at the beginning of the story.
Erin has been telling her story nightly which has drawn big crowds. I don’t know how but I wish it was in the main story, even if that level of recursion would probably form a singularity of words and we all die screaming into the abyss. I’d be screaming in joy though.
Stargazer’s promise is still at the inn but most of the team wants to head to the new lands. Lehra Ruinstrider is dragging her feet. I think this is meant to show her youth, despite her rank. They mention she has been off since her rival, Wall Lord Dragial, was killed at the end of the last volume.
Ryoka meets with Hedault to try to get the wand with the Dryad seed back. He has recently created a very profitable business making living furniture with the wand, as well as levelled up and specializing his class at level 40. Hedault can see Shaestrel and invites her in, which is interesting, I feel like very few characters are allowed to see deeper into the nature of the fae.
After an explanation, Hedault arrives at the conclusion that he cannot conscionably keep the wand as it uses the magic of a living creature at its core. I liked how he is shown to be so decisive but you can’t help but feel bad for the guy. Ryoka offers him anything to make up for it, and they burn down his apartment and almost die when they experiment on the sci-fi blade. Fortunately, Taletevirion is nearby to save them, being the worst retired character since Teriarch.
We get a brief interlude of Ivolethe playing Meliodore in the game of Fate, an analog of chess with real-world implications. Ivolethe says she likes Ryoka because of the prophecy and because she muddies fate wherever she goes. Oberon is also watching their game.
Ryoka decides to build connections by going on dinner dates with several characters. Ysara, TTV, Tyrion, and finally Erin. She meets with Erin to ask her to forgive Tyrion because Ryoka has to still be a moron. Erin puts up Vietnam flashbacks on the World’s Eye Theater after trying to beat the shit out of Ryoka, says he can never enter the main inn, and says she will kill him if he opposes her on a similar battlefield again. Hardcore, I love it.
Then a brief date with Ryoka and Rags. Rags is more pragmatic than Erin and will take any allies for the future no matter their pasts.
Also at some point we got a better idea of the calendar. 15 months in a year, starting in the spring. 32 days in a month. Winter is 4 months.
Finally, a big kicker at the end of the chapter: Erin has just defeated Niers in chess again and is considering her day, and writing to her penpals when Shaestrel appears. They mention the Gnomes and Shaestrel offers to play Erin in chess, having apparently beaten the Gnomes themselves. If Erin wins, Shaestrel offers to teach her the game of Fate that Ivolethe and Melidore were playing.
This is a level beyond anything in this world and while I doubt it comes to pass, I hope Erin does it. I like when the main characters get unique powers. If you’re reading this, you’re 11 million words into an isekai too, so don’t judge me.