Humphrey and Jason had very different fighting styles. Humphrey used strength and the weight of his heavy sword. Solid as a rock, his subtle but crucial footwork was the foundation of his balance as he swung a sword heavier than he was. His sweeping strikes looked simple, but their power and precision were exacting.

Jason’s style was more like an acrobatic dance. His sword was much smaller, smashing elementals apart not with power but with the considerable magic it had built up over the fight. The blade flickered in his hand, elementals scattering into clouds of sand on contact. His feet moved just as fast, and not always on the ground. Launching into a spinning leap, his razor-whip boots each took down an elemental before he landed, his movement never stopping.

The vortex bomb was the tipping point of the battle, letting the group get a handle on the elementals’ huge numbers. As the last one fell, the group came together, exhausted. They stood around, hands on knees, or lay down, ignoring the heat of the sand. Jason took out a fruit drink, slurping loudly to the envy of the others. Humphrey shook his head as identical paper cups appeared from his own void storage space.

“Gem berries?” Jason asked Humphrey, who nodded as he handed one of the large cups to Gabrielle. She gave him a dazzling smile before happily sipping at the juice drink.

Phoebe looked around the group with a weary grin. Only the elf and the two adventurers who fought together were injured, and nothing more than bruises. Sand elementals weren’t very dangerous individually, at least not ones that small. It was their numbers that made them a threat.

“Now you know why we send such big teams when we go out into the dunes,” Phoebe told the group.

“That’s rough,” Jason said unhappily, shifting uncomfortably on the spot. “That’s really rough.”

“We did warn you that we would be going into the desert,” Phoebe told him.

“What?” Jason asked absently, putting away his drink and taking out a bottle of crystal wash. “Oh, not that.” He tipped the bottle into his pants. “I meant literally rough. I have sand everywhere.”

80. It’s Not Work if You Love What You Do

80

It’s Not Work if You Love What You Do

After half a day of trudging through the desert, the group finally spotted the spirit coin farm. From the outside, all that could be seen was a high wall. It was still some distance off, but the group appreciated a landmark in the featureless ocean of sand.

“How exactly does a spirit coin farm work?” Jason asked. “Spirit coins don’t grow on trees, do they?”

“You really don’t know?” Mose asked.