The journey, which was supposed to be just half a day by cart, took two whole days. Prashant was operating on the modern assumption that a truck loaded with goods and a letter by post would take roughly the same time. But the reality was a capable teacher, and this short trip solved many doubts he had about the Indian way of life. One was why no horse-drawn coaches like in Victorian England in India. First, the land was often broken, the paths went over hills, some small streams and forests. Second, even if you had a plain path, monsoon would routinely make a mess of every plan. One would think, why not have an enclosed space? It could provide shelter from rain as well as general privacy, and then the answer is heat. The monsoon is hot and wet. So people would often keep an open but sheltered canopy. So even if India had rich iconography about chariots, often drawn by multiple horses, the actual modes of travel were often palanquins, horses, bullock carts or even exotics like camels and elephants. To keep the goods protected from rain, everyone decided to camp at a place rather than complete the journey in one go. Prashant had no problem with it; one more day on the road meant one more thing he could spawn to sell. As for why not worried about what might happen to his past life in modern times? Here comes blind optimism and unusual trust in the world. He knows by heart that no matter how he behaves in this world, his story will end with him waking on the same train the next morning at Delhi station.
"Am I plain stupid, or is my imagination not working properly? For an hour, I am trying to spawn a perfume or a soap or a sandalwood or a saffron. But no luck, either this is not allowed by the cheat rules, or I am not familiar enough with them, so I can't visualise them in reality. Bhagwan kuch to rasta dikha (Help me, god)."
[Item spawned, remaining mana: 0
One bundle of incense sticks ]
"Whoa, either the cheat is a dharmic, or I've spent a lot of time near temples in my last life. Either way works for me. Tomorrow I'll spawn one more and have it evaluated. This is a hot commodity; no one would bat an eye if I were to sell a few. I could directly sell outside the temple, and people would assume I'm just a devotee from outside trying to make small money. I have got this obsessive compulsion that I'll make the cheat and my existence woven intricately in this world's usual working. So instead of a quick rise to the top, I am going to take my sweet time on each step during the climb. Hope tomorrow I'll have a comfortable bed at some inn or Dharamshala and not out in the wild."
The next day went remarkably went, villagers thought they would need another camp in the wild. The village head even praised Prashant for the first time. Saying how much more sensible he is than their Gajendra. As it turns out, there was no need to be proud. Gajendra, one would think, was the name of a strong man; the title itself translates to the lord of elephants, was not his son. It was that damn donkey, who usually carried load for a while when carts needed crossing fords. Patil's passive aggression aside, the town was in sight. It carried a familiar name, but whether it's a mere namesake or actually the same world, needs further investigation. The actual entry was remarkably seamless, almost making him swear that even fast-tag tolls are not so smooth. He was told that they would take money from us, but nobody wants to stand collecting coins on a rainy day in a crowded market. Usually, everyone will have some sort of connection with the guilds, patrolmen or temple here. So they will eventually get their taxes, but with gentle reminders rather than like checking homework in a queue.
This was the first time Prashant had seen such a vibrant scene of medieval people all celebrating the festival of life. So to have the maximum, authentic experience, he sold the rice to the first trader and left this crowd of mud, rain and loud shouts towards the largest inn. He plans to have a comfortable hot water bath and mouth-watering meal before experiencing the authentic feel from a thousand meters away, preferably from the balcony of his cosy room. If the world tried to find his address, it certainly would be the ivory tower next to a library and museum. During the meal, he asked around to get a price for his scented cargo. Thankfully, the rain hadn't soaked the incense sticks of their mild, soothing floral aroma. He sold one bundle right there for one month of stay with premium services. The dharmashalas were operated primarily for pilgrims and merchants, so finding a buyer wouldn't be that difficult for the proprietor. The villagers will be staying for two days before returning. Prashant decided to keep another bundle for them. He even loaned the usual assortment of offerings for the goddess from the inn and went to meet the group. He is not a dharmic nor emotional guy, but he believes in clearing all kinds of debts, whether money or karmic, as quickly as possible. "A strong man should never keep entanglements for perpetuity; if there is ever a debt, he should be the creditor, not the other way around. That's the pride of a strong plus he actually worked as a donkey for them, surely that would wipe out all the debt" Prashant always kept this mantra.
"It's farewell for now. Maybe one day I'll return to the first village I saw in this world. Maybe I'll be the one to commission an arch for them. Maybe have someone mark the path I took from the cave as a monumental journey, and I'll adorn the cave with gold,.... control Prashant, control. You took a loan for a saree, maybe the golden cave should wait. That being said, this was the first time I saw a silver coin. The money I got for the rice was maybe copper or bronze, I can't tell. Not that I care, the decentralised polity of India meant, the smallest currency denominations were often extremely unreliable. The famous case of Sultan Tughlaq's catastrophic failure of currency change was due to people flooding the market with their home-minted coins. However, the silver coins of India were remarkably consistent and valued by other countries. Medieval India owes much of its wealth to the export of textiles and other artisan products, so having a stable currency for foreign trade made economic sense. So, usually, kings tried hard to control the urge to debase or outright counterfeit the silver currency." Prashant continued his usual monologue in a new cotton bed at night. As a parting gift, he even gave a few sweets to Virat, the bull from the village and Gajendra with no regard for whether they could eat them. It's typical of him, heavy gifts, zero actual thought and keeping a distance from all and thinking he must look like Shah Rukh Khan in the movies where he does a cameo role.
[Achievement modified: Nemesis of donkies > In league with the quadrupeds
Effect: General intimacy with the animals, can "speak" with them through the mind.]
"Huh, what a pleasant surprise. But it has a built-in danger too. If one achievement can be rewritten, then if it went too far, all can. If I had stacked my status with all good ones, and I went on a rampage, I'd have to bear the consequences. Point noted. It's all karma in the end. Maybe the cheat is Dharmic, maybe one day I'll share some prasad with it. Anyway, this new thing makes it so that I can now ride horses. Ride as in the sense that I can negotiate with a horse and let him carry me, all while maintaining the posture of a seasoned rider. This cheat truly knows me."
[First-time achievement modified. Awarded 1 point.]
"Cool, but the points come very slowly, and I haven't found a consistent way of obtaining those. Maybe I was supposed to go hunting, killing enemies. That's how games work. It doesn't matter either way. I've no interest in fighting others without a clear cause or understanding the full situation. Plus, I've no existential threat to advance, so this pace is fine too. Speaking of which, I'm going to put this into luck. I'm already almost twice as strong, though; my constitution will never be enough for me. Even after that stat goes above 1000, I'll still be thinking not enough, not enough like a madman. But seeing as I'm in a social context in town, better have fortune than conflict. Plus, I don't even know some fighting styles apart from punches and kicks to the gut. Who knows medieval India might be equipping their guards with bows, so all my kicking would make me a dancing target."
Next day, premium service from the get-go. He woke up much later than in the village; it felt like 8 in the morning, but the hot water was ready for his bath. No matter the era, money works. With a lazy bath, he decides to spawn incense, maybe all the morning rituals in this Dharamshala will increase his luck even further. And it did, during the meal downstairs, he sold the sandalwood-scented incense for two silver coins. Truly, increased trade with Arabs has trained my Indians to appreciate the quality of these categories of products. Many times, they were worth their weight in silver or even gold. With the newfound wealth, he offered to clear his debt, but the shrewd proprietor declined on the ground that he too wanted to send an offering to the temple of Dongarwadi. Unable to refute it, Prashant instead paid one coin to get general information about the world. Before this, the villagers told very little outside their daily life, and the knowledgeable Patil kept his mouth shut unless absolutely necessary. The news he got gave him a pleasant surprise; this was indeed the same world. Based on his limited understanding of cultures, Prashant determined it was the early 1500s. The Marathi and Gujarati literary era have just entered their prominence. There was no definite news of the Mughals, so maybe it was their early reign, or they were yet to arrive. And the town was indeed Nashik.
[Name: Prashant Patil
S: 8, C:13, M:1, L:10
New achievement: On the crossroads of Indian history (Cheats will radically differ based on how you engage with the world, with potential spawning of armies, a chance to leave India to settle somewhere else or easier persuasion power. It all depends on how one wishes to live in this vibrant period.)
]