Lo sets the payment down in Old Venn's palm, then gives a small, shy nod. Venn closes his fingers around the coins with a satisfied hum.
Old Venn
Fair trade. You handle tools like a man listening to them.
Lo turns away and pads to a quieter patch of the eastern yard, where broken crates lie stacked and sagging. The market noise thins behind him.
He raises the blow dart tube, breathes in slow, and lets the first shot slip cleanly into a cracked plank. The dart thuds with a neat little tap.
Old Venn
Good. Do that again, but lighter on the exhale. Let the breath leave you, not force it.
Lo resets, shoulders loose, eyes on the weathered wood. The next dart follows the line of his breath, steady and precise, and the crate face marks it without complaint.
Old Venn
That is better. If you want, I can show you how to seat the next dart faster, or you can keep feeling for the rhythm yourself.
✓ Quest Accepted
Practice with the light crossbow
✓ Quest Accepted
Practice with real crossbow shots
“I get some good distance in an empty spot and target crates, letting the wind challenge me, exhaling gently when i fire”
SUCCESS (Mediocre Ranged Combat, rolled +1)
Lo eases farther into the empty patch of yard, leaving the stall noise behind. He plants his feet, squares the tube, and lets the wind worry at his fur.
He waits for the breath to settle, then releases it soft and thin. The dart snaps out cleanly, riding the air instead of fighting it.
It strikes high on the crate face with a sharp, tidy click, dead center in the grain scar.
Old Venn
There. You felt the gust before it bit. That is the trick.
A second breath later, Lo sends another shot, a little farther out. It lands true again, and the crate edge shivers from the neatness of it.
Old Venn
Good. You are not just aiming at wood now, you are aiming through the yard.
Venn gives a pleased grunt and flicks a fresh dart up from his bundle, but does not step in. He holds it ready, watching to see whether Lo wants one more distance shot or to stop on the clean pair.
“I try the same with the crossbow”
FAILURE (Mediocre Ranged Combat, rolled -2)
Lo shifts his grip and levels the crossbow toward the crate. He draws on the same quiet breath, but the yard breeze slips under the bolt and nudges it wide.
The shot cracks into the wood off-center, low enough to bark a splintered chip from the crate face.
Old Venn
There, you felt it. The bow answers slower than the tube.
Venn taps the air with two fingers, then points at the crossbow's stock and the drift of sawdust between them. His ready dart stays in hand, untouched.
Old Venn
Let the weapon settle before you trust the wind again.
The crate now bears three marks, but the last one sits wrong, a little too low to count as clean practice.
Quest Complete
Practice with the light crossbow
Skill Upgrade: Ranged Combat Mediocre→Fair
Quest Complete
Practice with real crossbow shots
Skill Upgrade: Ranged Combat Fair→Good